8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Bernie, the Bookman, Buys In, May 8, 2003
Lawrence Block is one of our most talented mystery authors. In the Bernie Rhodenbarr series he explores how an ordinary, but intelligent, "honest" person might go about pursuing a life of crime as a fastidious and talented burglar who isn't proud of what he does, doesn't like to hang out with criminals, and really gets a big thrill out of breaking and entering . . . and removing valuables. As you can see, there's a sitcom set-up to provide lots of humor. But the humor works well in part because Mr. Block is able to put the reader in the Bernie's shoes while he breaks, enters and steals . . . and evades the long arm of the law. To balance the "honest" burglar is an array of "dishonest" and equally easy-money loving cops. As a result, you're in a funny moral never-never land while your stomach tightens and your arm muscles twitch as tension builds. To make matters even more topsy-turvy, Bernie at some point in every story turns into an investigator who must figure out "who-dun-it" for some crime that he personally didn't do. It's almost like one of those "mystery at home" games where the victim comes back as the police investigator, playing two roles. Very nice!
So much for explaining the concept of the series. The Burglar Who Liked to Quote Kipling is the third book in the series. I strongly suggest that you begin the series by reading Burglars Can't Be Choosers and follow it up with The Burglar in the Closet. Each story in the series adds information and characters in a way that will reduce your pleasure of the others if read out of order. Although, I originally read them out of order and liked them well enough. I'm rereading them now in order, and like it much better this way. The Burglar Who Studied Spinoza comes next in the series.
The Burglar Who Liked to Quote Kipling introduces two major changes into the series, both of them favorable. Bernie is now the proprietor of Barnegat Books in Greenwich Village, which features used hard cover books, some of which are collectibles. After one of his big heists, he has enough to buy the store, which he used to patronize. The former owner heads off to Florida, leaving Bernie with something to do with his spare time. In this book, Bernie mainly spends his time in the store reading. He's not quite sure whether he makes any money or not, but he likes being around the books . . . and he hopes to meet interesting women. With this change, the series shifts to having a bookish angle that I find delightful.
The second major change is that Bernie now has a friend, Carolyn Kaiser, who provides an offbeat offset to Bernie's burglaries. She runs The Poodle Factory, where she grooms dogs for a living (while preferring cats in her private life). She and Bernie share lunches, dinners, drinks and good times together. But it's not boy and girl. Carolyn's romantic interests don't run toward men. As a result, you get a sort of Nick and Nora Charles element without the sexual element affecting the couple. It works really well. Mr. Block successfully experimented with having a female sidekick for Bernie in The Burglar in the Closet, but the romantic development showed that it would be hard to sustain in subsequent books so he wisely ended that relationship. This one, on the other hand, can be easily sustained based on mutual interests and friendship.
As the book opens, Bernie's trying to convince everyone that he's gone straight, including his crooked cop friend, Ray Kirschmann, who wants to hire Bernie to lift a mink coat for his wife. Then Bernie gets an invitation to lunch at an exclusive club and learns about a rare and obscure work of Rudyard Kipling's with an anti-Semitic slant that someone wants stolen. Bernie can't resist, and the fun begins! Although the burglary is difficult enough, the aftermath soon has Bernie on the run. Carolyn's pressed into helping him, and the misunderstandings and confusion quickly mount. The puzzle's a deliciously complex one, and you'll enjoy seeing unraveled by Bernie (with a little help from his burglar's tools). You'll find the puzzle to be a nice step up from the ones in the first two books in the series. This is definitely a five-star effort and promises many good things to come.
This book's theme comes down to things not always being as they seem. I came away starting to question a lot more of my assumptions about whether appearances are honest representations of reality.
Look hard for the Potemkin village, wherever you are or whatever you are doing!
Donald Mitchell
Co-author of The 2,000 Percent Solution, The Irresistible Growth Enterprise and The Ultimate Competitive Advantage
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good fun, but not his best Burglar IMHO, November 19, 2004
This review is from: The Burglar Who Liked to Quote Kipling (Bernie Rhodenbarr Mystery) (Mass Market Paperback)
While Lawrence Block's Burglar series is a bit formulaic (some of the scenes are virtual repeats, at times), his characters are simply a riot. The plot is probably not the best part of these books--the characters and dialog are. So, if you are looking for a hard boiled or serious mystery, read Block's Scudder series or an Agatha Christie. While there is fun in this book (I would prefer to give it 3.5 stars) and a great quote for my collection: "I swear, if jumping weren't allowed she'd never get to a conclusion" on page 180), this is not, IMHO, his best Burglar/Rhodenbarr book. Try "The Burglar Who Traded Ted Williams" or the new "The Burglar on the Prowl," for instance. Still, I'd recommend reading them all as light entertainment, similar to Block's Tanner series. I must admit, I like the Scudder ones better.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Third in the series is the best so far!, May 8, 1998
This review is from: The Burglar Who Liked to Quote Kipling (Bernie Rhodenbarr Mystery) (Mass Market Paperback)
This is the third of eight novels in the Bernie Rhodenbarr series by author Lawrence Block who has written many other novels. I was first introduced to Bernie when I picked up a copy of "The Burglar Who Traded Ted Williams." Bernie gets himself into again. It wouldn't be a "Burglar who..." book if he didn't. This time he's involved with a lost Rudyard Kipling poem. The manuscript is lost and found several times before the "case" is solved. Bernie is drugged and his found holding a gun, which has been used to kill one of the characters. For the first time we find Bernie in the Bernegat used bookshop in New York City's Greenwich Village which he has purchased. We are also introduced to Carolyn Kaiser owner of a dog grooming parlor. Once again this part-time cat burglar must turn part-time detective to save his own skin. "The Burglar Who Liked to Quote Kipling," is fun as are the other "The Burglar Who..." books I have read.
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