Goodbye, Robert B. Parker

I was sorry to learn that author Robert B. Parker died on January 18, 2010.

He wrote the Spenser books, in which wise-cracking, Boston-based Private Investigator Spenser (no first name) solved mysteries while following his own strict moral code. His notions of honor informed his behavior as a P.I., as a man, as a lover, and as a friend. During his endeavors, Spenser was aided by a variety of lawbreakers and law enforcers, most of whom shared a similar moral code. This code was not necessarily the one adhered to by most churchgoers.

When I was younger, I read the books for the humor. By the third paragraph of the first Spenser book, The Godwulf Manuscript, I was hooked. One of my favorite lines involves a scene in a later book in which self-educated Spenser introduces himself as "Orotund Vowel."

If you haven't already read the books, and you don't have time to visit the local library (or if it's closed due to budget cuts: is nothing sacred!), please go to Amazon.com, type in "Godwulf Manuscript," and read the first few pages.

If you like witty dialogue, you'll like the Spenser books. If you're well read, you'll enjoy the literary references. If you're a fashionista, you'll shake your head at Spenser's descriptions of his oh-so-fashionable outfits.

Parker's website: http://www.robertbparker.net/

Some quotes from Spenser books: http://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/396.Robert_B_Parker"

Quotes du jour: "Spenser," I said, "with an s like the English poet." Parker, R. B. (1973, p. 137). The Godwulf Manuscript. Dell Publishing: New York.

"La mode se démode, le style jamais." Citations de C. Chanel