Ronald Rabbit Is a Dirty Old Man

By Lawrence Block

One man’s letter-writing addiction will have some very funny consequences     Laurence Clarke is having a bad day. His boss realized that his editorial position was made redundant months ago, his wife’s discovered that she’s got more in common with his best friend Steve, and his ex-wife and her father are on his case for the alimony he owes. What’s a guy to do? How about write them all letters telling them just what he thinks and letting them know that life hasn’t got Laurence down—it’s got him running away on a lurid and highly erotic adventure with a bevy of naughty young things.   This ebook features an illustrated biography of Lawrence Block, including rare photos and never-before-seen documents from his personal collection, and a new afterword written by the author.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Media
• Release date: Dec 28, 2010
• ISBN: 9781453208588

Lawrence Block

Lawrence Block is one of the most widely recognized names in the mystery genre. He has been named a Grand Master of the Mystery Writers of America and is a four-time winner of the prestigious Edgar and Shamus Awards, as well as a recipient of prizes in France, Germany, and Japan. He received the Diamond Dagger from the British Crime Writers' Association—only the third American to be given this award. He is a prolific author, having written more than fifty books and numerous short stories, and is a devoted New Yorker and an enthusiastic global traveler.

Reviews for Ronald Rabbit Is a Dirty Old Man

[thomaspluck · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is a delightfully filthy romp. I need to read more romps

[grandpahobo_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is a well written and entertaining book. The style of using letters to tell the story really works well. There is quite a bit of graphic sex and language, but it is presented in such a literary fashion that the shock value is diminished.

[antao-3 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Published 2000.


“’Hookers?’
‘Well, they get twenty, so you couldn’t call them virgins. But nice girls. One of them used to be a stewardess.’
‘What did the other one used to be?’
‘A virgin, I guess. I used to a be a virgin, come to think of it. You game, Larry?’
I said I couldn’t afford it.
[..]
‘I’ll tell you, I get very awkward going there alone. Because there’s the two of them.’
‘So?’
‘So I hate to choose between them. It’s like rejecting one of them and telling the other ‘You’re a nice kid but I’d rather fuck your roommate.’ So she’s rejected, and she sits in the other room watching the fucking television set, and the whole things puts me off stride.’
‘You’re putting me on,’
‘I just don’t like to reject people.’”

In “Ronald Rabbit is a Dirty Old Man” by Lawrence Block

Since having finished reading the book, I’ve been thinking on the best way to write about it without being crass.

The following is the best I could come up with. Read it at your own peril on my blog.

[ptdilloway-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is a good read for fans of "50 Shades of Grey." If you thought that book was groundbreaking, Block's novel came out in 1971. Do the math there. It's a huge departure from the crime novels of Block's I've read recently like "The Girl with the Long Green Heart," "Grifter's Game," and "Hit Man."

The story takes place through a series of letters, most written by one Laurence Clarke. On the same day Laurence's wife leaves him for his best friend, his bosses at his publisher finally figure out he's been "stowing away" in their company for the better part of a year, doing nothing but reading in his office all that time. It's like in "Office Space" where he was supposed to be fired but no one got around to telling him, so he just kept coming in and getting paid.

These devastating events turn out to be Laurence's liberation. While on a bender he meets a group of teenage girls who've snuck out of their Catholic school. What they end up doing would break a number of laws. Eventually he finds a new woman and woos her with some kinky sex. His greatest triumphs are at the end when he manages to play matchmaker for his ex-wives and best friend and in the process solve several dilemmas at once.

If you're prudish or squeamish it's easy to hate this novel. It's pretty graphic and descriptive about things like anal and oral sex. At the same time, Laurence is so delightfully cunning and "evil" that I enjoyed rooting for the "bad guy." And hey, if your sex life is lacking, there might be some good tips in there.

That is all.