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Burke: Vachss' Battered Paladin On Gotham City's Mean StreetsSep 29 '02 (Updated Oct 10 '02) Write an essay on this topic.
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The Bottom Line In a crowded field, Vachss' damaged Quixote triumphs, battling the worst of Gotham's underbelly, assisted by a family of prostitutes, thieves and assassins. Strong. Shocking. Real.
When I think of the topic of great mystery series, I reminded of all the authors over these many years which have invited me to spend time in their marvelous worlds. It's impossible to select a single best series, but when it comes to New York City, I'll go out on a literary limb, choosing Andrew Vachss's hard-bitten, hard-boiled anti-hero protagonist, Burke. Vachss himself has an interesting and checkered background that helps this reader understand where he is coming from with his bleak, steamy, and yet impassioned look at a side of New York few citizens or tourists wish to glimpse. An attorney, specializing in child abuse and youth offender cases, Vachss peers from the back inside cover of his novels, a black patch over one eye, razor-sharp cheekbones looming over a thin, unsmiling mouth. The storyteller in me wants to believe he lost an eye while running a gladiator school, his character Burke's term for the teen years reformatory, and a real life management position for this dedicated writer. Vachss' long, lank blond hair would seem to have less in common with David Spade than a nonconformist, iconoclastic personal philosophy. General Information About The Novels Some volumes in this series stand alone, but the majority read better if taken in logical, and chronological turns. This is especially true with Vachss' second novel, Blue Belle, unquestionably a pivotal volume in the group. In fact, the third novel, Strega, which I read out of turn, gives away almost all the secrets of the former, and seems almost out of context, without understanding the impetus of Blue Belle. A few of the books, Blossom and Into The Zero, take place outside the usual New York City terrain, and are a bit less affective, given that not all of Burke's family, and notably Max, see main character listings below, are largely absent from the action. Burke, who never knew a thing about either parent, and whose birth certificate read "Baby Boy" for the first name, operates outside the law, receiving referrals from mobsters, (Strega), former cellmates, (Blossom), and acquaintances calling in markers, (Into The Zero), as well as family members, a few sympathetic cops and child care workers. He lives in the supposedly unused top floor of a crumbling apartment building, and bunks with a 140 pound Neapolitan mastiff named Pansy. Pansy eats whatever Burke eats, from Chinese food, to pushcart hot dogs, to massive bowls of ice cream and chocolate chip cookies. This combination best friend and protector climbs the fire escape to reach her roof exercise yard and dumping ground. Burke's cases range from rescuing a teen from the clutches of an evil cult, to locating the whereabouts of a battered little boy. He investigates his best friend's nephew, the local law's prime suspect as sexual sniper in a series of lover's lane killings, and attempts to unravel a bizarre club catering to perversions, then blackmailing clients, while pampered children of the rich and near famous seem to be suiciding in increasing numbers. He elicits the help of pimps, transvestites, made men, strippers, voodoo high priestesses, Chinese and West Indian gang members, district attorneys, child therapists, pedophiles and others in his attempt to rid his society of stalkers, child molesters, serial killers and more. Vachss' writing is spare, and brings to mind many of the finest noir authors, from Hammett, Chandler, Ross, Connelly and Leonard. Precious little humor infuses these obsessive works of revenge and rescue, and at times Burke himself, seems to suffer from the same depression as fellow New Yorker, Matt Scudder. My first reaction to his writing, through the language of the excellent Safe House, was to do a mental double take with the hard-bitten prose, and take-no-prisoners, pull-no-punches reality. This is pungent stuff, best taken in small doses, (if it were a beer, it would be Guiness Stout!), and the way it rings so true, so tragic, will stay with the reader for a long, long time. Cast Of Characters Burke: raised by the state, Burke is of indeterminate age, and in the dozen or so years of this series, seems to have aged from mid 30's to mid 40's. He's served several terms in state prison, makes no bones about admitting he is a thief, and runs various mail scams and stings, chiefly against pornographers, mercenary wannabes and the like. He's scarred from the physical, mental and emotional abuse of revolving foster homes and local gladiator schools. He's called Schoolboy by his number one mentor and family member Prof: a diminutive man of color, Prof stands for both Professor and Prophet, Burke preferring the latter. A fellow thief, and experienced con, the Prof spotted a young Burke as he walked into The Yard, coming off a month of protective custody (PC), as a new fish. Taking Burke under his fatherly arm, he's saved his life and schooled him, dispensing his street smarts through a series of Old School raps: don't do the crime if you can't do the time; as a rule be cool, don't be a fool. Max: one of my all-time favorite characters, is described as a Mongolian warrior, a deaf-mute combining the bulk of a Sumo wrestler with the stealth and lethal moves of a Ninja. More than anyone else, Max has Burke's back, and is a welcome addition, much like Hawk is to Robert B. Parker's Spenser series. The Mole: is almost a cartoon character, someone you'd recognize from the old Dick Tracy-style comics. His lair is a massive junkyard near the river, with a warren of underground bunkers, a stockpile of explosives, anonymous getaway vehicles and a circling pack of fearsome junkyard dogs. A Nazi hunter, Mole speaks slightly more than Max, and less than Prof, and through most of the series is assisted by Terry, a young runaway taken off the stroll by Michelle: a TV prostitute, classy feminine force in the lives of Burke, Mole and Terry, whom she christens her son. Michelle is advisor, confessor, consultant and one of two Mother Hens to the motley family. She's saving up for The Operation, and is a fine, sassy counterpoint to Mama: also of indeterminate age, who runs her Chinese Restaurant, The Gardens, as a front for her other, more larcenous activities. Mama serves as the bank for Max and Burke's capers, and serves up succinct bits of biting wisdom along with her hair raising Hot and Sour Soup, (a sort of culinary initiation for those new to the fold), vats of take out chow for Pansy, and basement encounters. Mama has a soft spot for Max's young daughter, Flower, and runs interference for Burke, both with her tong member kitchen staff and response to all calling one of 3 back room pay phones: Burke not here. You leave message. Conclusions And Recommendations I've yet to read a bad Burke novel, and Vachss has a way with plotting, dialogue and locale. As previously mentioned, these stories have an authentic feel to them, a grim truth that compels you to explore more of this dark side. Crime fiction is not my favorite variety of mystery, though I've spent much time enjoying the works of John D. MacDonald, John Connolly and Robert Crais among others. I'd rather laze along the intercoastal waterways and learn about marine life and the local mating habits and manana lifestyle of Randy Wayne White's Doc Ford novels or even Glen Cook's intergalactic PI series. Nevertheless, the consistent excellence of Andrew Vachss' Burke capers leads me to strongly recommend it. These unblinking looks at life on the wild and seamy side, and the ultimately redemption of a battered man's forays into what sparks his own fears yield bittersweet yet addictive fruit. Highly worthy of your consideration.  |
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