The Burglar in the Rye, Lawrence Block, Signet, $6.99.
Either you like Lawrence Block's dark, depressingly violent Matt Scudder books, or you prefer the light hearted and
frequently very funny Bernie Rhodenbarr books. I confess I fall into the later category. I've long been a fan of Bernie's,
and having even re-read several of the early series books a few times I was more than delighted when Block brought Bernie
out of hibernation. I loved
The Burglar Who Traded Ted Williams but was put off by
The Burglar in the Library
and hadn't picked up another "Bernie" book until this one, an affectionate homage to Salinger's
Catcher in the Rye.
Almost everyone, I think, probably remembers the first time they read
The Catcher in the Rye, and in Block's deft
and clever book, everyone remembers the fictional
Nobody's Baby, written by the fictional Gulliver Fairborn. Almost
every character has occasion to say, in one way or another, "That book changed my life". Bernie is on the hunt for some
letters written by the ultra reclusive and mysterious Fairborn, but when he breaks into Fairborn's agent's apartment to
"liberate" them, the agent is dead and Bernie has to leave empty handed.Though the plots in the Burglar books are almost
always insanely clever, what's really fun about them is the setting and the very real characters that Block chooses to
populate Bernie's world. There's Bernie himself, bookseller by day, burglar by night (and I have to say in my early years
of bookselling, Bernie's choice was starting to seem like an excellent one); there's Carolyn, the lesbian dog groomer and
Bernie's best friend; there's Ray, the insensitive, uneducated cop on the take, who nevertheless manages to figure out
what's going on; and of course each book has it's own individual characters. In
The Burglar in the Rye there's a
mysterious female who apparently lived for a brief time with Fairborn, and a charming retiree named Henry who wants to
learn the bookselling game and who turns up out of nowhere to help out at the store just when Bernie can use it.
In this particular installment, lots of the humor comes when Carolyn, who has a new girlfriend, starts wearing make-up
and wearing her hair long. She even puts on a skirt. The change is so funny, and so built on real affection for Carolyn,
that it's totally endearing. You just know Bernie's love life is going to tank, just as you know that Bernie will probably
get comfortably drunk (in ths book, everyone drinks Rye - get it?) with Carolyn and later Henry; and there's lots of
discursive little elements, not least of which is a description of the Paddington Hotel where Fairborn's agent was in
residence and where Bernie checks in to cover his burglary there. (And yes, it does involve Paddington bear). These books
deserve to be read, savored and appreciated as you might appreciate a delicious souffle by a master chef - light and skillful,
they are a true delight, and The Burglar in the Rye is an especially strong and entertaining entry in the series.
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