Meanwhile Back at the Ranch [Paperback]

Kinky Friedman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 7, 2002

Dylan Weinberg, an eleven-year-old boy with a rare form of autism, is missing. A stock market wizard, he can only utter one word, 'Schnay'. Kinky takes the case but he faces a dilemma when Lucky, a cat from his aunt Nancy's Utopia Animal Ranch, also disappears. Kinky decides to put his faith in Village Irregular Steve Rambam, who was trained as both a cop and a rabbi, to help find the kid in New York. Meanwhile, Kinky hightails it to the ranch in Texas, where the only witnesses are a dim-sighted, eighty-year-old lady and a frisky canine named Mr Magoo. Luckily, it seems that Lucky stowed away in the back of Nancy's truck, got spooked by some wolves, and then somehow found his way home. As for Dylan, Kinky has a sinking feeling that Dylan's father, fed up with a mountain of medical bills, may have disposed of his sick son. In fact, Kinky finds him tucked away in a slightly less than Dickensian orphanage where he has been abandoned. It's a double happy ending, and even the great Kinkster is at a loss to explain it. The cat, of course, said nothing.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Consistently irreverent, politically incorrect and more than a little outrageous, the Kinkster's 15th effort (after 2001's Steppin' on a Rainbow), while it may please his fans, is unlikely to win any new ones, as it's just a bit thin in the telling. Reading a Friedman novel is like listening to a hip monologue where some of the jokes work, some don't. Reading a Friedman novel is like being thrust into a hellzapoppin' world where reality is the only uncertainty. The ultimate effect, however, is amiable. The author's compassion for the underdog and love of animals are clear. Kinky has three cases to handle and he has catalogued them with the names of the Three Stooges. "Larry" involves a missing autistic boy, 11-year-old Dylan Weinberg, who speaks only one word, "Schnay," which is the clue to the mystery that surrounds him. "Moe" concerns a serial killer, whom Kinky and his buddy, Rambam, stake out. And finally there's "Curly," which focuses on the disappearance of a three-legged cat named Lucky. Lucky is of great sentimental value to Kinky's cousin Nancy, who helps run the Utopia Animal Rescue Ranch (a real place), where unwanted animals are allowed to live out their lives. One of the cases comes to nothing, while another produces an unexpected corpse. It takes Friedman half the book to build a momentum, but once begun it moves well to a credible conclusion. The cat, incidentally, says nothing.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Kinky has his hands full he must track down an autistic child and his wayward cat, Lucky.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 220 pages
• Publisher: Faber & Faber (October 7, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0571209513
• ISBN-13: 978-0571209514
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.3 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,261,747 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Kinky's Ranch-Flavored Manhatten Mystery, October 9, 2002

By 

William Fare (Cedar Rapids, IA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Meanwhile Back at the Ranch : A Novel (Hardcover)

God bless Kinky Friedman, member of the country-freak outfit the Jewboys and author of 15 novels. There've been stalls in the series, poorly executed plotlines, and inexcusable scatalogical humor. Yet, Friedman's detective series based not-so-loosely on himself and his friends, is as fresh as ever with Meanwhile, Back At The Ranch.

I enjoyed Friedman's other Texas adventures, although I'm not sure if readers like seeing him spend an entire novel away from his home base of New York City. Here we get a perfect mix, as Kinky is balancing several mysteries at once, and one of them sends him down to the Texas hill country to team up with a dog to find a cat. Yeah, I know...but it's hilarious. Just read it.

The NYC portion of the book has a storyline that is slightly more of a serious nature, and Rambam (one of the more serious Village Irregulars) is brought in to help out with the rough stuff. An autistic child is missing and a serial killer is on the loose, although any regular Friedman reader knows that the solution to the mystery is often not of great import.

Speaking of sidekicks, why is Ratso only onboard for a page or two? Perhaps real life Larry "Ratso" Sloman's success with the reissue of his Bob Dylan book will thrust him back into Kinky's universe. Sorry, I miss him.

While Kinky's rants on life have tamed some over the years, he's maintained a personal touch that connects with people. It's a short book (like the entries before it) and can be read in a short afternoon. Expect more Willie Nelson than Ellery Queen.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars More Kinky views of life and the strange folks who live it, November 8, 2002

By 

booksforabuck "BooksForABuck" (Long Beach, CA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Meanwhile Back at the Ranch : A Novel (Hardcover)

Private detective (and former musician) Kinky Friedman finds himself torn between a missing three-legged cat in Texas and a missing autistic child in New York. The cat comes first and Kinky heads down to Utopia, Texas for some good-ole-boy moments, but his duty calls him back to New York where his recurring pal Rambam demands to be made part of the case (Rambam also thinks he might have found his future bride--the sister of the missing child and an obvious suspect). Using visions, both his own and others', and some clever detecting Kinky strips away some of the confusion--but can either a three-legged cat or an autistic child survive for long on their own--either in the wilds of Texas or those of New York?

Fans of the Kinky Friedman series will find a lot to enjoy in MEANWHILE BACK AT THE RANCH. Kinky's observations about life in general, his descriptions of the customs and people he meets, and his insights into human nature ring true. Kinky's strange similies will bring a smile to even the most jaded reader (maybe especially to the jaded reader). And Friedman goes out of his way to be an equal opportunity offender, slinging insults at all religions and ways of life.

Kinky Friedman books are not for everyone but MEANWHILE BACK AT THE RANCH is one of the better ones.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun and Enjoyable, June 27, 2003

By 

Leon Schmitz (Detroit, Mi) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Meanwhile Back at the Ranch: A Novel (Hardcover)

This was the first Kinky Friedman book that I have ever read. I picked it up at the library after hearing that he was an "interesting" author in a few magazine write-ups. I must say that I was pleasantly surprised.

This book reads very well and VERY quick. The characters portrayed in the book are full of quirks, ticks, and other little nuances that add to their personalities. As the story moved on, I found myself laughing out loud at quite a few pages and at the same time, still being intrigued at the mystery. You don't find a lot of mystery books with a twist like that.

Kinky Friedman succeeds in this book by not taking himself too seriously and at the same time tells an in depth story. Pick it up... you'll be glad you did!