The Yard Dog
A Hook
Runyon Mystery
Sheldon
Russell
St. Martin's Minotaur (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 0-312-56670-0 (0312566700)
ISBN-13: 978-0-312-56670-8 (9780312566708)
Publication Date: September 2009
List Price: $24.99
Synopsis (from
the publisher): The Yard Dog
takes place near the close of World War II, when a large number of Nazi
POWs were incarcerated in camps scattered across the prairies of the
United States.
At Waynoka Divisional Point, near POW Camp Alva, the disillusioned Hook
Runyon is assigned by the railroad to run off hobos and arrest
pickpockets. Left behind in the war because of the loss of his arm in a
car accident, Hook lives in a caboose, collects rare books, and drinks
busthead liquor. When a coal picker by the name of Spark Dugan is found
run over by a reefer car, Hook and his sidekick, Runt, the local
moonshiner, suspect foul play and are drawn into a scheme far greater
than either could have imagined. This conspiracy reaches the highest
echelons of the camp and beyond and will push Hook and Runt to their
physical and mental limits.
Hook is a complex character, equal parts rough and vulnerable, an
unlikely and unwilling hero. He is more than matched by Dr. Reina
Kaplan, a Jewish big-city transplant to Camp Alva who is battling her
own demons and has been put in charge of educating the Nazi inmates in
the basics of democracy before their eventual return to Germany.
Vivid descriptions of period detail, stark landscapes, and unique
characters make this first book in the Hook Runyon series a fascinating
mystery full of tension and deep insight.
Review: Set in
the mid-1940s along the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway lines in
northern Oklahoma, Sheldon Russell introduces a rather unusual
character, Hook Runyon, a one-armed railroad agent, sometimes known as
a "yard dog", hired to run off hobos and arrest pickpockets, in The Yard Dog, the first mystery in
this series.
Spark Dugan, a non-too-bright loner, has lived in a tar paper shack
beneath a railway trestle just about all his life. He discovered early
on that when the coal cars stopped at the station, chunks of coal would
fall to the ground. He gathered the bits of coal and finding a ready
market, sold them to local residents for heating or cooking. On a good
day he would make enough money for some “shine” to drink, a
Bull Durham to smoke, and some baloney for frying. But now there's a
war on, and Oklahoma has a POW camp with 5000 prisoners along the rail
lines. More trains are coming, which means more people, which means
Spark has to be more careful not to be seen taking the coal, even at
night. One night he is evidently not careful enough. The next morning
his body is found beneath a refrigerator, or "reefer", car on the
tracks. Hook Runyan was both a friend and customer of Spark. Spark had
delivered a bucket of coal every morning to Hook’s home–an
old caboose. Although the men that find him said Spark must have
committed suicide, Hook does not even consider that as an option. He
believes Spark was murdered. But why? He doesn’t know. But he and
his good friend Runt, the local moonshiner, set out to learn the truth.
What they find is a far greater crime than any they could have ever
imagined.
Russell has created one of the most noteworthy characters in modern
detective fiction. Hook Runyon is tough, smart, witty ... and collects
first editions! When he begins to investigate the death of Spark, he
heads for the POW camps, the only recent change in the landscape. There
are prisoners who are ordered to help unload the trains that pass
through, and of course there are men who guard them. But there's also
the local millionaire, Hugh Favor, who owns the Favor Oil Company.
Hook's investigation suggests there is some
relationship–conspiracy?–between Favor and the train
deliveries, but he's unsure how to proceed ... and who at the camp may
also be involved and benefits.
The Yard Dog has so much
to offer. Russell relives the horrors of Hitler's Germany, and its
impact on rural Americans in the form of POW camps. Into this mix he
brings a one-armed yard dog, a book collector who takes a shine to
moonshine. And there's a new lady in his life, Dr. Reina Kaplan, who is
down from New York to teach English to the prisoners. The plot is well
thought out, the characters memorable, the setting unusual, overall
it's incredible. The Yard Dog
is not only one of the best debuts of the year, it is among the best
mysteries of the year.
Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of The Yard Dog and to St. Martin's Minotaur for providing a copy of the book for this review.
Review Copyright © 2009 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved
Have you read The Yard Dog? How would you rate it?
Mysteries in this series ...
The Yard Dog
St. Martin's Minotaur (Hardcover), September 2009
ISBN-10: 0-312-56670-0 (0312566700)
ISBN-13: 978-0-312-56670-8 (9780312566708)
Omnimystery keywords for The Yard Dog ...
Location(s) referenced: Oklahoma.
