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Strong beginning for noted and gifted series
Book Review
By Derryll White
Block, Lawrence (1997). Burglars Can’t Be Choosers.
I return to writers like Lawrence Block, Stewart Kaminsky and John D. MacDonald to revisit where the mystery genre came from. Their writing is clear and very good.
This is Lawrence Block’s first novel in what became an extended and popular series. I was drawn to it by the unique idea of having a thief as the hero. I immediately thought of Robin Hood when I found this book, and was pleased to find, after finishing it, that Block had something similar in mind. Could it possibly work that way – robbing the rich to give to the poor? Well, as Bernie Rhodenbarr, the burglar, would say, the poor also have nothing worth stealing.
Lawrence Block has a very easy way of writing for the Rhodenbarr books, not as hardboiled as his Matthew Scudder novels. He has a wry, gentle humour that keeps the reader focused and attentive so as to not let the funny lines slide by. And he is kind to Rhodenbarr, a quixotic character who breaks the law but respects people.
The book is slow and laid back, just like Bernie. He is a burglar because it provides a good life and matches his skill set. He doesn’t think he is qualified for anything else. But he does spend time in bed with appealing women, and he does that gently as well, tastefully really.
‘Burglars Can’t Be Choosers’ is not a deep story, but it does make the reader chuckle as Block explores the infinite possibilities of fate and the incomprehensible quirks of human nature. It is a very strong beginning for what becomes a noted and gifted series.
****
Excerpts from the novel:
GOURMET – I dumped concentrated Chicken With Stars soup into a presumably clean saucepan, added water, heated the mess on the stove, pepped it up with a little thyme and a dash of soy sauce, and was sitting down to eat it just as the folk-rock station came through with a five-minute news summary.
A TURN-ON – There’s something very sexual about burglary, isn’t there? How on earth did you get into a business like that? But the man’s supposed to ask the girl that question, isn’t he?
HONESTY – “He’s honest,” I said, and when she stared at me I explained. “There’s all kinds of honest. If a cop like Ray makes a deal he’ll stick with it. He’s that kind of honest. And you heard him carry on when I showed some doubt about him giving Loren an even split. He was genuinely offended at the implication. What’s so funny?”
“I was thinking of Carter. He wouldn’t understand a syllable of this.”
“Well, he’s a different kind of honest.”
– Derryll White once wrote books but now chooses to read and write about them. When not reading he writes history for the web at www.basininstitute.org.
