Customer Reviews

Nobody's Perfect

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Another laffer from the Sultan of Slapstick Crime. This time Dortmunder and the gang steal a priceless painting so the owner can collect the insurance only to have everything go wrong. No guards in the area-guess what. Nobody at the house will be using the elevator-guess what. And to top it off Dortmunder loses the painting and must make good before a hitman finds him. I expected to find that the owner had the painting all the time and was using the loss as an excuse not to pay Dormunder, but as usual, you can't outhink the master. The painting is lost and Dortmunder's attempt to cover it up is hilarious and brilliant. The final heist of the painting has Dortmunder and Kelp working with the owner and the hitman to recover it from Merrie Olde England. Great fun.

Nobody's Perfect, even Westlake, this is one of the least good of the John Dortmunder adventures but fans of the series and probably the greatest author of all time, are going to want to read a copy of the fourth instalment in this sensational series. This novel contains the brilliant twists in the storyline and Murphy's Law's constant involvement in Dortmunder, Kelp and the rest of the gang's supposedly simple capers, but what's missing is the level of humour, there's a few funny lines from the characters but not many. Westlake of course wrote many different types of novels throughout his long career and a lot weren't comic capers but with the Dortmunder series you're kind of expecting a comic caper, not just a good crime caper read. What also lets this novel down is that if you haven't read the first three novels, The Hot Rock, Bank Shot and Jimmy Kid, then you're enjoyment factor of those reads is going to be less as this novel through Dortmunder's dialogue gives away the endings of all three of those books. So definitly read those three before picking up this one! This novel is historically important as it is the first caper that Tiny Bulcher appears and is introduced to the rest of the gang. It is also brings back all the various minor gang members for a cameo appearance who helped out in the previous three novels along with the luck wise poor guys from the Continental Detective Agency which is kind of nice.

Basic plot of Nobody's Perfect has a celebrity lawyer dismissing Dortmunder's court appointed wannabe lawyer and cleverly getting Dortmunder off a slam dunk prosecution for getting caught red handed stealing TVs. Dortmunder knows a miracle occurred but isn't going to stick around to pay back the debt. However the lawyer has contacts and knows all about John's life including his girl May and her flat. So after he calls, Dortmunder decides after pressure from May that he better go find why the guy who paid for his lawyer did so. It seems Arnold Chauncey wants Dortmunder to rob his house of a painting and whatever of the guest's possessions he would like during a party, so that he can claim the insurance money. Chauncey also wants the painting back and to make sure Dortmunder doesn't go looking for a better buyer he's also hired a hit man who will end Dortmunder's life of crime once and for all if the painting isn't returned in exchange for a cut of the insurance money when it is paid. As always happens, the smooth robbery doesn't go according to plan and there's no way Dortmunder can return the painting. He's going to need all his planning to get out of this one!

Just doesn't have the can't put down factor the other books in the series have!

I won't repeat the other reviews, but this is a fine book IMHO, and a good example of the Dortmunder genre.

Here's a quote to get some flavor:

'"There it is," Kelp said, and there it was: Dunkin' Donuts, with its steamy window full of do(ugh)nuts.'

And after parking, they meet Kelp's nephew Victor:

'"Mr. Dortmunder!" he said, hoppinng to his feet and sticking out the hand with the dunked do(ugh)nut in it. "Nice to see you again." Then he realized he was still holding the do(ugh)nut, chuckled sheepishly, stuck the whole thing out of sight in his mouth, wiped his hand on his trousers, stuck it out again, and said "Murf nur murf."

"That goes for me, too", Dortmunder told him, and shook his sticky hand.'

I mourn the passing of Donald E. Westlake.

This book is superb Donald Westlake. If you read any of his other Dortmunder books, you will like this one.
All the usual inept crew are here at their best. If you have not had the pleasure of reading these Donald Westlake capers, you are in for a fun ride. In my opinion they are absolutely delightful. And when their plans don't go as planned, (as they always do) you will find yourself amused with however in the world they get themselves out of trouble. These are fun books to read and enjoy. I recommend this one highly.

Nobody's Perfect reminds me of the old story about how for lack of a nail . . . the kingdom is lost. Little things matter a lot in this story, so pay close attention!

As the book opens, Dortmunder is about to begin a defense against being caught red-handed with a stack of television sets he is stealing. As a twice-convicted felon, that's bad news. Suddenly, in walks one of the great criminal defense attorneys, J. Radcliffe Stonewiler, Esq., and in an hour-and-a-half Dortmunder is a free man. What's going on? That's what Dortmunder wonders, too, and he soon finds out that he has an obligation to fulfill to Arnold Chauncey, a society collector who likes to fill in the gaps in his income with payments from his insurance company for art that has "disappeared."

Although he's not excited about the caper, Dortmunder figures it will be pretty easy and the payoff is a large one. Then, while lifting a $400,000 painting, he decides to take just one or two other items . . . and everything begins to unravel.

This story brings Dortmunder into the full realization that the bad luck that dogs him has more to do with him than with Andy Kelp, who he has been blaming for the problems that arose in Bank Shot, The Hot Rock and Jimmy the Kid. It also marks the introduction of that large and easily angered tough guy, Tiny Bulcher, who is a fixture of many of the best books in the series. The Continental Detective Agency also makes another appearance, having been reassigned after losing the bank in Bank Shot.

One of the charms of this story is that Arnold Chauncey is one of the most larcenous rich people you will ever meet, aided by an indifference to the needs of others and a diabolical mind for finding ways to get what he wants.

Donald E. Westlake sets up one of the funniest complications for having a heist go sour that you will ever read as the gang splits up and runs into unexpected challenges when a wee bit of the dew is upset.

The story is filled with lengthy gags involving various aids that the criminals are using. You'll imagine yourself watching a very funny video as you read some of the sequences.

After you finish enjoying this fine tale, think about where wanting just a little more has caused problems in your life. Where can more moderation serve you better in the future?

If you've never read any of Donald Westlake's "Dortmunder" stories, look for one immediately. Both the characters and the plots are imaginative and hysterically funny. You'll soon feel like this crazy bunch of bungling burglars are good friends of yours! I've now read all of the series, and just hope Westlake keeps writing more of them.

I mean that in a good way, of course. His hero Dortmunder is at it again, stealing a painting FOR the mark (to collect insurance, of course, naughty boy). What's intersting is to read as things go horribly, side-splittingly wrong for Dortmunder and crew. D. Westlake is one of the few authors who can have me laughing out loud, not just from his character descriptions, but writing out the action. One of my favorite lines of his is in this book. Kelp is driving Dortmunder around in a "borrowed" doctor's car (his favorite kind - doctors know how to pamper themselves). He has to hit the brakes suddenly. How would D. Westlake describe this? Easy. "The car stopped on a dime and gave him change." Eat your heart out Raymond Chandler.

Get this book from second hand bookshop, look for it in your uncle's basement! It isn't the best in Dortmunder series but it's worth the search. It features plenty of characters form previous books and a chilly scroupolous killer as Dortmunder's "faithful" shadow. You will read of old D on holidays (! ) and on a work trip in London as it used to be: still swinging and full of Mini Morris.