The Pigeon

by Jay Bennett

Responding to his former girlfriend's plea for help, 17-year-old Brian goes to her Greenwich Village apartment only to find her dead and himself framed for her murder. He vows to findher killers and the reason for her death.

Genres: Fiction, Mystery Thriller

139 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1980

About the author

Jay Bennett (born in New York City, December 24, 1912, died June 27, 2009 in Cherry Hill, NJ) was an American author and two-time winner of the Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America. Bennett won the Edgar for Best Juvenile novel in 1974 and 1975, for The Long Black Coat (Delacorte Press) and The Dangling Witness (Delacorte Press), respectively. He was the first author to win an Edgar in consecutive years. A third book, The Skeleton Man (Franklin Watts), was nominated in 1987. Bennett is best known among English teachers and young adults for these and other juvenile mysteries, like Deathman, Do Not Follow Me (Scholastic).

Reviews

[Rusty · Rating 3 out of 5]

A call from an ex-girlfriend, Donna, takes Brian Cawley to see her. She needs to talk with him she said and because she sounded upset he consents. As he heads for her apartment he remembers how close they were during their relationship. But Donna sounded frightened so he hurries on his way to discover why. When he arrives he finds her dead of a knife wound in the chest.

As he stares at her, he is hit on the head. Waking up later with a knife in his hand, he doesn't know what to do. He knows he didn't kill Donna. As he evaluates the situation a phone call from a man warns him to leave the scene. As he does he hears a police car with its siren blaring. It stops in front of the building but he manages to escape.

Brian knows that he has been set up but why, who killed her and why? Even his mother isn't certain of his innocence because she knew how close they were at one time and how emotional their breakup had been. When he calls her she tries to persuade him to give himself up. Instead, he turns to a teacher he was able to connect with in high school. After discussing the situation through and all around she finally decides to hide him. She helps, getting hair dye and clothes to change his appearance so he can move about without being recognized. Can they unveil the real killer? Readers need to follow Brian through his search for the killer before he, too, dies.

[Eden Silverfox · Rating 4 out of 5]

Brian Cawley is on the run, and it's something he didn't even do. It happened that night, the night he went to visit his ex, Donna. She sounded frightened on the phone, he remembers and he figured he would find out what's wrong.
He never got the chance. He woke up with a knife in his hand and Donna just laying there. But Brian knew he didn't do anything. And it was a phone call from a stranger that saves him. Now Brian is on the run and doing what needs to do to find out who really committed the murder.

This is my first time reading a book by Jay Bennett and it was the only book of his my library had. I'm glad I decided to pick it up and read it.
I like the way Mr. Bennett writes. There is just something about his style that I like and it keeps you reading, wanting to know what happens next to Brian. Will he be able to prove his innocence? Will the real killers get caught?
You don't know and Brian has some close calls. There are times you think that he is going to get caught.
I really thought this was a great book. The story was intense and you didn't really know what was going to happen to everyone until you get to the end. I look forward to reading more books by Jay Bennett.

[Maggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great book! It was a quick read because it was shorter and the suspense kept you going. This is the kind of book that makes you want to read faster because you want to know whats coming. It puts you in the perspective of a book who is framed for his friends murder but when he tries to figure out what happens he gets wrapped up in a bigger situation. I would defiantly recommend this book.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Current copy is in good condition. Read as a teen, and I don't recall anything.