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《蝙蝠俠的幫手》集結了十篇馬修．史卡德的短篇探案，從中，你可以回味《酒店關門之後》的故事源頭，可以回到《刀鋒之先》寶拉自17層高樓墜下的現場，還有他和老長官馬哈菲處理一樁舉槍自殺意外的插曲，以及其他各色各樣，揭開馬修．史卡德序幕的原點，是一本進入史卡德、重溫史卡德的最佳選擇。
十個短篇探案故事包括：
．〈窗外〉（Out the window）
．〈給袋婦的一支蠟燭〉（A candle for the bag lady）
．〈黎明的第一道曙光〉（By the dawn's early light）
．〈蝙蝠俠的幫手〉（Batman's helpers）
．〈慈悲的死亡天使〉（The merciful angel of death）
．〈夜晚與音樂〉（The night and the music）
．〈尋找大衛〉（Looking for David）
．〈夢幻泡影〉（Let's get lost）
．〈一時糊塗〉（A moment of wrong thinking）
．〈立於不敗之地〉（Mick Ballou looks at the blank screen）
十個短篇探案故事包括：
．〈窗外〉（Out the window）
．〈給袋婦的一支蠟燭〉（A candle for the bag lady）
．〈黎明的第一道曙光〉（By the dawn's early light）
．〈蝙蝠俠的幫手〉（Batman's helpers）
．〈慈悲的死亡天使〉（The merciful angel of death）
．〈夜晚與音樂〉（The night and the music）
．〈尋找大衛〉（Looking for David）
．〈夢幻泡影〉（Let's get lost）
．〈一時糊塗〉（A moment of wrong thinking）
．〈立於不敗之地〉（Mick Ballou looks at the blank screen）
256 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2011
148 people are currently reading
524 people want to read
About the author
Lawrence Block
767 books2,986 followersLawrence Block has been writing crime, mystery, and suspense fiction for more than half a century. He has published in excess (oh, wretched excess!) of 100 books, and no end of short stories.
Born in Buffalo, N.Y., LB attended Antioch College, but left before completing his studies; school authorities advised him that they felt he’d be happier elsewhere, and he thought this was remarkably perceptive of them.
His earliest work, published pseudonymously in the late 1950s, was mostly in the field of midcentury erotica, an apprenticeship he shared with Donald E. Westlake and Robert Silverberg. The first time Lawrence Block’s name appeared in print was when his short story “You Can’t Lose” was published in the February 1958 issue of Manhunt. The first book published under his own name was Mona (1961); it was reissued several times over the years, once as Sweet Slow Death. In 2005 it became the first offering from Hard Case Crime, and bore for the first time LB’s original title, Grifter’s Game.
LB is best known for his series characters, including cop-turned-private investigator Matthew Scudder, gentleman burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr, globe-trotting insomniac Evan Tanner, and introspective assassin Keller.
Because one name is never enough, LB has also published under pseudonyms including Jill Emerson, John Warren Wells, Lesley Evans, and Anne Campbell Clarke.
LB’s magazine appearances include American Heritage, Redbook, Playboy, Linn’s Stamp News, Cosmopolitan, GQ, and The New York Times. His monthly instructional column ran in Writer’s Digest for 14 years, and led to a string of books for writers, including the classics Telling Lies for Fun & Profit and The Liar’s Bible. He has also written episodic television (Tilt!) and the Wong Kar-wai film, My Blueberry Nights.
Several of LB’s books have been filmed. The latest, A Walk Among the Tombstones, stars Liam Neeson as Matthew Scudder and is scheduled for release in September, 2014.
LB is a Grand Master of Mystery Writers of America, and a past president of MWA and the Private Eye Writers of America. He has won the Edgar and Shamus awards four times each, and the Japanese Maltese Falcon award twice, as well as the Nero Wolfe and Philip Marlowe awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America, and the Diamond Dagger for Life Achievement from the Crime Writers Association (UK). He’s also been honored with the Gumshoe Lifetime Achievement Award from Mystery Ink magazine and the Edward D. Hoch Memorial Golden Derringer for Lifetime Achievement in the short story. In France, he has been proclaimed a Grand Maitre du Roman Noir and has twice been awarded the Societe 813 trophy. He has been a guest of honor at Bouchercon and at book fairs and mystery festivals in France, Germany, Australia, Italy, New Zealand, Spain and Taiwan. As if that were not enough, he was also presented with the key to the city of Muncie, Indiana. (But as soon as he left, they changed the locks.)
LB and his wife Lynne are enthusiastic New Yorkers and relentless world travelers; the two are members of the Travelers Century Club, and have visited around 160 countries.
He is a modest and humble fellow, although you would never guess as much from this biographical note.
Born in Buffalo, N.Y., LB attended Antioch College, but left before completing his studies; school authorities advised him that they felt he’d be happier elsewhere, and he thought this was remarkably perceptive of them.
His earliest work, published pseudonymously in the late 1950s, was mostly in the field of midcentury erotica, an apprenticeship he shared with Donald E. Westlake and Robert Silverberg. The first time Lawrence Block’s name appeared in print was when his short story “You Can’t Lose” was published in the February 1958 issue of Manhunt. The first book published under his own name was Mona (1961); it was reissued several times over the years, once as Sweet Slow Death. In 2005 it became the first offering from Hard Case Crime, and bore for the first time LB’s original title, Grifter’s Game.
LB is best known for his series characters, including cop-turned-private investigator Matthew Scudder, gentleman burglar Bernie Rhodenbarr, globe-trotting insomniac Evan Tanner, and introspective assassin Keller.
Because one name is never enough, LB has also published under pseudonyms including Jill Emerson, John Warren Wells, Lesley Evans, and Anne Campbell Clarke.
LB’s magazine appearances include American Heritage, Redbook, Playboy, Linn’s Stamp News, Cosmopolitan, GQ, and The New York Times. His monthly instructional column ran in Writer’s Digest for 14 years, and led to a string of books for writers, including the classics Telling Lies for Fun & Profit and The Liar’s Bible. He has also written episodic television (Tilt!) and the Wong Kar-wai film, My Blueberry Nights.
Several of LB’s books have been filmed. The latest, A Walk Among the Tombstones, stars Liam Neeson as Matthew Scudder and is scheduled for release in September, 2014.
LB is a Grand Master of Mystery Writers of America, and a past president of MWA and the Private Eye Writers of America. He has won the Edgar and Shamus awards four times each, and the Japanese Maltese Falcon award twice, as well as the Nero Wolfe and Philip Marlowe awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America, and the Diamond Dagger for Life Achievement from the Crime Writers Association (UK). He’s also been honored with the Gumshoe Lifetime Achievement Award from Mystery Ink magazine and the Edward D. Hoch Memorial Golden Derringer for Lifetime Achievement in the short story. In France, he has been proclaimed a Grand Maitre du Roman Noir and has twice been awarded the Societe 813 trophy. He has been a guest of honor at Bouchercon and at book fairs and mystery festivals in France, Germany, Australia, Italy, New Zealand, Spain and Taiwan. As if that were not enough, he was also presented with the key to the city of Muncie, Indiana. (But as soon as he left, they changed the locks.)
LB and his wife Lynne are enthusiastic New Yorkers and relentless world travelers; the two are members of the Travelers Century Club, and have visited around 160 countries.
He is a modest and humble fellow, although you would never guess as much from this biographical note.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 146 reviews
November 14, 2016
For the first time ever, all the short stories featuring Matthew Scudder are collected between two covers.
Matthew Scudder has been my favorite detective for a few years now and I'm always ready for more of his stories. The Night and the Music is all I could hope for and more. From the touching intro by Brian Koppelman to Lawrence Block's notes at the end, I was once again entranced.
The stories presented are from various points in Matthew Scudder's career. It could easily serve as either a jumping on point for new readers or a nice summation of the series. You've got Matt solving staged suicides, setups, and mysterious deaths. There are stories of Matt during his seldom talked about days on the police force and even one of his jobs with Reliable, rounding up bootleg Batman merchandise. The later stories are my favorite. As Matt enters the later years of his life, he spends more time thinking about the old days. He and Elaine run into someone he arrested years before while vacationing in Italy. Mick Ballou and Matt talk about death and Mick asks Matt to be his best man.
The final story in the collection threatened to yank silent tears from my manly ducts. Mick has closed Grogan's and he, Matt, Elaine, and Kristin gather for one last night of stories. As Mick and Matt reminisced about the earlier times in that fabled bar, I remembered experiencing the same moments with them in the early books. If Lawrence Block never writes another Matthew Scudder book, One Last Night at Grogan's would be a beautiful way to end the series.
I can't recommend the Matthew Scudder series enough and The Night and The Music is no exception!
Matthew Scudder has been my favorite detective for a few years now and I'm always ready for more of his stories. The Night and the Music is all I could hope for and more. From the touching intro by Brian Koppelman to Lawrence Block's notes at the end, I was once again entranced.
The stories presented are from various points in Matthew Scudder's career. It could easily serve as either a jumping on point for new readers or a nice summation of the series. You've got Matt solving staged suicides, setups, and mysterious deaths. There are stories of Matt during his seldom talked about days on the police force and even one of his jobs with Reliable, rounding up bootleg Batman merchandise. The later stories are my favorite. As Matt enters the later years of his life, he spends more time thinking about the old days. He and Elaine run into someone he arrested years before while vacationing in Italy. Mick Ballou and Matt talk about death and Mick asks Matt to be his best man.
The final story in the collection threatened to yank silent tears from my manly ducts. Mick has closed Grogan's and he, Matt, Elaine, and Kristin gather for one last night of stories. As Mick and Matt reminisced about the earlier times in that fabled bar, I remembered experiencing the same moments with them in the early books. If Lawrence Block never writes another Matthew Scudder book, One Last Night at Grogan's would be a beautiful way to end the series.
I can't recommend the Matthew Scudder series enough and The Night and The Music is no exception!
March 12, 2020
This, the last Matt Scudder book to be issued, published in 2013, is a rather motley affair. A Drop of the Hard Stuff (2011) has the honor of being--at least so far--the last substantial entry in the Scudder Series. The Night of the Music is instead, a collection of odds and ends: eleven short pieces written over the course of thirty-four years, from “Out the Window” (1977) to “One Last Night at Grogan’s,” which was written especially for inclusion here.
The first two tales are novelettes Block published between the first three Scudder paperback originals and the first full-length, hardbound novel, A Stab in The Dark: in “Out the Window,” Scudder shows that the suicide of a waitress is actually a murder, and in “A Candle for the Bag Lady,” Scudder, remembered in the will of a bag lady, feels compelled to bring her murderer to justice.
The rest of the pieces here are either short stories or mere sketches. “By the Dawn’s Early Light,” will be of particular interest to die-hard Scudder devotees, for this account of Tommy Tillary, his murdered wife, and his girlfriend Caroline was later re-worked and included as a subplot in The Sacred Ginmill Closes, a book many consider to be Block’s finest.
The other pieces are all entertaining, but vary in length and weight. Perhaps the best are “Batman’s Helpers” in which Scudder accepts an uncharacteristic odd job (one he vows never to do again) confiscating counterfeit Batman merchandise from immigrant street vendors, and “The Merciful Angel of Death,” a thoughtful treatment of the AIDS epidemic, assisted suicide, and mercy killing. My favorites, however, since I’m a big Mick Ballou fan, are the two last stories in the book: “Mick Ballou Looks at the Blank Screen,” in which the murderous Irishman gives his opinion of the notorious conclusion of The Sopranos, and “One Last Night at Grogan’s,” in which Scudder and Ballou and their wives hold a wake for Ballou’s old Hell’s Kitchen saloon.
Any old Scudder fans who missed this book the first time around should read it. Those of you who are still reading the novels, though, should wait until you have read at least the first fourteen books in the series. Only if you do so will you appreciate what “One Last Night at Grogan’s” is all about.
August 12, 2021
Play this as you read this review, “You and the Night and the Music,” Frank Sinatra:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aURH_...
"I seem to remember every drink I ever drank; I just don't always remember why."
I have as of this date read or listened to 13 of Lawrence Block’s 17 Matthew Scudder novels and have largely read them in order of publication. But I was traveling and the last four novels are not in audio, and so I skipped ahead to the end to listen to the last Scudder book, a collection of over 30 years of Scudder short stories, vignettes and ephemera, and I loved it. On the whole it creates a near-sentimental—this is goodbye, after all—portrait of Matt, and I even got tears in my eyes a few times as I read. We see some things we hadn’t seen in the novels. Some of them have Scudder telling old war stories of his time as a cop.
Scudder stories can be divided into wet alcoholic stories where he very specifically remembers every drink he had--they're at heart about his sad love affair with booze, the days when "it seemed to do more for me than against me"--and dry alcoholic stories, where he still goes in to the bars, but now just drinks coffee there because if he did drink booze it would kill him. The drinking books are like Raymond Carver's stories about various things, where the central telling detail is what the characters are drinking on the path to destroying their lives.
Some highlights: “Out the Window” —investigates the apparent suicide of a waitress at one of the bars Matt haunts. Scudder has his own past, regrets, and need to expiate, so when he talks to the guy who actually did it, he tells him he needs to confess, tell the story, to be able to go on with his life. A pretty moving conclusion. This is a drinking Scudder story, but telling-your-story is what Matt does later in AA, what he does when he talks shop with Elaine, what he does to try and figure out a case (he tells his buddy Grogan the story of what he thinks happened, and Grogan tells a version back to him, and so on. Telling stories as healing, telling stories (and sometimes lies/fiction) to get to the truth is a key to Scudder's storytelling in the series.
“Candle For the Bag Lady”—Matt tithes, he gives money to the homeless, in part as a way of settling a score with God (though he’s not always sure God exists) for his accidental shooting of a little girl that sent his life into the gutter. A neighborhood bag lady in this story was stabbed to death and Matt learns she has left him—the Good Samaritan—money in her surprisingly sizable will. In silent, post-mortem thanks for that, Matt finds her killer, but in the process finds how important the lady was in the lives of the neighborhood. One of those sentimental ones.
“By the Dawn’s Early Light”—An award-winning story that formed the eventual core of Scudder fan favorite novel When the Sacred Ginmill Closes. A drinking buddy, Tommy Tillary, finds his wife is murdered and he hires Matt to help solidify the evidence against the two burglars accused of the crime. A few masterful turns in a superb story.
“Batman’s Helpers”—Not really a mystery, and not really a Batman story, but interesting in the light it casts on Scudder/Block’s feelings about how the poorest of New Yorkers are treated in the capitalist system. Here Matt works a freelance gig to get bootleg Batman merchandise off the streets. But why hassle new immigrants from Senegal selling t-shirts?
“A Moment of Wrong Thinking”—Great little story where Matt and Elaine, out with another couple, hear that a neighbor has committed suicide. Matt asks what kind of gun was used, they mock him for the question, but he explains to Elaine later with a story he has never told her about a guy who may have committed suicide, may have accidentally killed himself. The resolution, which depends on the type of firearms used, forces you to look at an obvious explanation and question it again and again.
“Merciful Angel of Death”—One of Block’s treatments of the AIDS crisis. A sweet woman helps many patients who are dying in a hospice; she’s also on occasion been killing them, at their request. Illegal, yes, Scudder acknowledges, but might it be seen as ultimately humane? A moving story of that period.
“The Night & The Music”—Not a mystery, but sweet, a kind of sentimental coda to the beloved series and about Matt and Elaine’s relationship as they go out to some Manhattan jazz clubs. As Block says, it has become a “performance” piece for him to read now.
“Mick Ballou Looks At the Blank Screen”—We need to see Matt with his good friend and Scudder series favorite Mick one last time. Mick wants to talk about The Sopranos finale, and share some news, which terrifies Matt as he waits to hear of it. But it turns out the Sopranos talk is not connected to the end of the tv show, and but just a set-up for good news (sorry for the little spoiler, there).
“One Last Night at Grogans”–-Okay, we see Mick one MORE time, in the very last Scudder story, written especially for this collection. Mick has sold the bar, and they sit there in Hell’s Kitchen one last time, just talking old times, a perfect ending to the series.
My fave Scudder novels:
1. Eight Million Ways to Die
2. When the Sacred Ginmill Closes
3. A Stab in the Dark
4. A Long Line of Dead Men
5. The Devil Knows Your Dead
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aURH_...
"I seem to remember every drink I ever drank; I just don't always remember why."
I have as of this date read or listened to 13 of Lawrence Block’s 17 Matthew Scudder novels and have largely read them in order of publication. But I was traveling and the last four novels are not in audio, and so I skipped ahead to the end to listen to the last Scudder book, a collection of over 30 years of Scudder short stories, vignettes and ephemera, and I loved it. On the whole it creates a near-sentimental—this is goodbye, after all—portrait of Matt, and I even got tears in my eyes a few times as I read. We see some things we hadn’t seen in the novels. Some of them have Scudder telling old war stories of his time as a cop.
Scudder stories can be divided into wet alcoholic stories where he very specifically remembers every drink he had--they're at heart about his sad love affair with booze, the days when "it seemed to do more for me than against me"--and dry alcoholic stories, where he still goes in to the bars, but now just drinks coffee there because if he did drink booze it would kill him. The drinking books are like Raymond Carver's stories about various things, where the central telling detail is what the characters are drinking on the path to destroying their lives.
Some highlights: “Out the Window” —investigates the apparent suicide of a waitress at one of the bars Matt haunts. Scudder has his own past, regrets, and need to expiate, so when he talks to the guy who actually did it, he tells him he needs to confess, tell the story, to be able to go on with his life. A pretty moving conclusion. This is a drinking Scudder story, but telling-your-story is what Matt does later in AA, what he does when he talks shop with Elaine, what he does to try and figure out a case (he tells his buddy Grogan the story of what he thinks happened, and Grogan tells a version back to him, and so on. Telling stories as healing, telling stories (and sometimes lies/fiction) to get to the truth is a key to Scudder's storytelling in the series.
“Candle For the Bag Lady”—Matt tithes, he gives money to the homeless, in part as a way of settling a score with God (though he’s not always sure God exists) for his accidental shooting of a little girl that sent his life into the gutter. A neighborhood bag lady in this story was stabbed to death and Matt learns she has left him—the Good Samaritan—money in her surprisingly sizable will. In silent, post-mortem thanks for that, Matt finds her killer, but in the process finds how important the lady was in the lives of the neighborhood. One of those sentimental ones.
“By the Dawn’s Early Light”—An award-winning story that formed the eventual core of Scudder fan favorite novel When the Sacred Ginmill Closes. A drinking buddy, Tommy Tillary, finds his wife is murdered and he hires Matt to help solidify the evidence against the two burglars accused of the crime. A few masterful turns in a superb story.
“Batman’s Helpers”—Not really a mystery, and not really a Batman story, but interesting in the light it casts on Scudder/Block’s feelings about how the poorest of New Yorkers are treated in the capitalist system. Here Matt works a freelance gig to get bootleg Batman merchandise off the streets. But why hassle new immigrants from Senegal selling t-shirts?
“A Moment of Wrong Thinking”—Great little story where Matt and Elaine, out with another couple, hear that a neighbor has committed suicide. Matt asks what kind of gun was used, they mock him for the question, but he explains to Elaine later with a story he has never told her about a guy who may have committed suicide, may have accidentally killed himself. The resolution, which depends on the type of firearms used, forces you to look at an obvious explanation and question it again and again.
“Merciful Angel of Death”—One of Block’s treatments of the AIDS crisis. A sweet woman helps many patients who are dying in a hospice; she’s also on occasion been killing them, at their request. Illegal, yes, Scudder acknowledges, but might it be seen as ultimately humane? A moving story of that period.
“The Night & The Music”—Not a mystery, but sweet, a kind of sentimental coda to the beloved series and about Matt and Elaine’s relationship as they go out to some Manhattan jazz clubs. As Block says, it has become a “performance” piece for him to read now.
“Mick Ballou Looks At the Blank Screen”—We need to see Matt with his good friend and Scudder series favorite Mick one last time. Mick wants to talk about The Sopranos finale, and share some news, which terrifies Matt as he waits to hear of it. But it turns out the Sopranos talk is not connected to the end of the tv show, and but just a set-up for good news (sorry for the little spoiler, there).
“One Last Night at Grogans”–-Okay, we see Mick one MORE time, in the very last Scudder story, written especially for this collection. Mick has sold the bar, and they sit there in Hell’s Kitchen one last time, just talking old times, a perfect ending to the series.
My fave Scudder novels:
1. Eight Million Ways to Die
2. When the Sacred Ginmill Closes
3. A Stab in the Dark
4. A Long Line of Dead Men
5. The Devil Knows Your Dead
December 13, 2011
This was a good year for fans of Lawrence Block’s detective Matthew Scudder. First we got a new novel with A Drop of the Hard Stuff and then this collection of short stories.
In Matt’s long history he’s gone from alcoholic ex-cop dealing with the guilt of accidently killing a child while breaking up a robbery to his eventual sobriety all while acting as an unlicensed private detective who follows his own sometimes odd brand of justice instead of a law book.
These stories cover all the phases of Matt’s life and showcase his complex nature. In one story, Matt becomes enraged at the sleazy boyfriend of a dead woman for stealing her possessions and goes out of his way to screw with him even though he knows he’s not guilty of killing her, yet he’ll also sit down and have a nice lunch with a man he once sent to prison for murder. Matt spent his career identifying various shades of gray in other people and himself and still managed to hang onto his moral compass and a basic sense of decency.
Summing up the stories:
Out the Window - Matt’s still drinking and looks into the apparent suicide of a waitress who worked at his favorite gin joint.
Candle For the Bag Lady - Another one where Matt is still boozing. A neighborhood bag lady was stabbed to death and Matt is surprised to learn that the woman had money and left him a tidy little sum for no reason he can think of. Feeling an obligation he doesn‘t really understand, Matt starts looking into the murder and his investigation gets the neighborhood talking and turns the woman into a minor folk hero with surprising consequences.
By the Dawn’s Early Light - No AA for Matt yet. His drinking buddy Tommy’s wife is murdered and he hires Matt to help solidify the evidence against the two burglars accused of the crime. This is the story that inspired Block to continue the series after he thought it may have reached a conclusion and it’s the basis for the novel When the Sacred Ginmill Closes.
Batman’s Helpers - Holy crossover! Matt Scudder teams up with Batman. Sort of. Matt works a freelance gig for a big agency trying to get bootleg Batman merchandise off the New York streets.
Merciful Angel of Death - The administrator of an AIDs hospice fears that a mysterious woman has been killing the patients and asks Matt to investigate.
The Night & The Music - Matt and Elaine hit New York's after hours clubs to hear some jazz. This is just a very short story with no crime at all, but I got to hear Lawrence Block read this one years ago at a signing for Hope to Die so it’s one of my favorites in the book.
Looking for David - While on vacation in Europe, Matt bumps into a man he had once sent to prison for murdering his male lover. Surprisingly, the man invites Matt to lunch and tells him exactly why he committed the crime.
Let’s Get Lost - Another flashback story when Matt was still a cop, and he provides some odd advice to players at a poker game who have a murdered man on their hands.
A Moment of Wrong Thinking - Yet another flashback to his police days where Matt tells Elaine of how his partner handled a case of apparent suicide.
Mick Ballou Looks At the Blank Screen - Matt’s best friend Mick wants to talk about the Soprano’s finale and share some news.
One Last Night at Grogans - Written especially for this collection, Mick has sold the saloon where he and Matt spent so many long nights talking, and the two of them and their spouses spend one last evening in the bar. Hard not to think that this may be Block having Matt take one last bow at the close of the series, but if this is the end, then it was a perfect way to say goodbye.
In Matt’s long history he’s gone from alcoholic ex-cop dealing with the guilt of accidently killing a child while breaking up a robbery to his eventual sobriety all while acting as an unlicensed private detective who follows his own sometimes odd brand of justice instead of a law book.
These stories cover all the phases of Matt’s life and showcase his complex nature. In one story, Matt becomes enraged at the sleazy boyfriend of a dead woman for stealing her possessions and goes out of his way to screw with him even though he knows he’s not guilty of killing her, yet he’ll also sit down and have a nice lunch with a man he once sent to prison for murder. Matt spent his career identifying various shades of gray in other people and himself and still managed to hang onto his moral compass and a basic sense of decency.
Summing up the stories:
Out the Window - Matt’s still drinking and looks into the apparent suicide of a waitress who worked at his favorite gin joint.
Candle For the Bag Lady - Another one where Matt is still boozing. A neighborhood bag lady was stabbed to death and Matt is surprised to learn that the woman had money and left him a tidy little sum for no reason he can think of. Feeling an obligation he doesn‘t really understand, Matt starts looking into the murder and his investigation gets the neighborhood talking and turns the woman into a minor folk hero with surprising consequences.
By the Dawn’s Early Light - No AA for Matt yet. His drinking buddy Tommy’s wife is murdered and he hires Matt to help solidify the evidence against the two burglars accused of the crime. This is the story that inspired Block to continue the series after he thought it may have reached a conclusion and it’s the basis for the novel When the Sacred Ginmill Closes.
Batman’s Helpers - Holy crossover! Matt Scudder teams up with Batman. Sort of. Matt works a freelance gig for a big agency trying to get bootleg Batman merchandise off the New York streets.
Merciful Angel of Death - The administrator of an AIDs hospice fears that a mysterious woman has been killing the patients and asks Matt to investigate.
The Night & The Music - Matt and Elaine hit New York's after hours clubs to hear some jazz. This is just a very short story with no crime at all, but I got to hear Lawrence Block read this one years ago at a signing for Hope to Die so it’s one of my favorites in the book.
Looking for David - While on vacation in Europe, Matt bumps into a man he had once sent to prison for murdering his male lover. Surprisingly, the man invites Matt to lunch and tells him exactly why he committed the crime.
Let’s Get Lost - Another flashback story when Matt was still a cop, and he provides some odd advice to players at a poker game who have a murdered man on their hands.
A Moment of Wrong Thinking - Yet another flashback to his police days where Matt tells Elaine of how his partner handled a case of apparent suicide.
Mick Ballou Looks At the Blank Screen - Matt’s best friend Mick wants to talk about the Soprano’s finale and share some news.
One Last Night at Grogans - Written especially for this collection, Mick has sold the saloon where he and Matt spent so many long nights talking, and the two of them and their spouses spend one last evening in the bar. Hard not to think that this may be Block having Matt take one last bow at the close of the series, but if this is the end, then it was a perfect way to say goodbye.
October 11, 2011
Lawrence Block's Matthew Scudder has been one of the most enduring and certainly one of the best-written protagonists in the history of crime fiction. Beginning with The Sins of the Fathers in 1976, Block has written seventeeen novels featuring Scudder, the recovering alcoholic who is also a cop-turned-unlicensed and then (finally) licensed New York P.I.
Over the years, Block also wrote a number of short stories featuring Scudder, which appeared in a variety of different places and some of which won awards for short fiction. Now, the author has gathered these stories together in The Night and The Music and has added an introduction by screenwriter Brian Koppelman. He has also added a new story, written especially for this collection, titled "One Last Night at Grogan's," an elegiac piece in which Matt, his wife, Elaine, Mick Ballou and Mick's new wife sit around a table in Mick's Hell's Kitchen saloon for one last night of stories before the building is transferred to its new owners.
Those readers who have loved this series for so long will treasure these stories, some of which Block incorporated into the Scudder novels, and many of which have not been readily available for some time. One can't help but dread that, in collecting these stories and in writing the last one, Block might be drawing the final curtain on Matt Scudder. Intellectually, one understands that no doubt sooner rather than later, his run will have to come to an end. But those of us who have grown up with Matthew Scudder and who have waited, often very impatiently, for the next Scudder book can only hope that the moment has not come yet. "One Last Night at Grogan's" would certainly be a fitting end to Matthew Scudder's career, but none of Block's legion of fans is ready to face that awful moment yet.
Over the years, Block also wrote a number of short stories featuring Scudder, which appeared in a variety of different places and some of which won awards for short fiction. Now, the author has gathered these stories together in The Night and The Music and has added an introduction by screenwriter Brian Koppelman. He has also added a new story, written especially for this collection, titled "One Last Night at Grogan's," an elegiac piece in which Matt, his wife, Elaine, Mick Ballou and Mick's new wife sit around a table in Mick's Hell's Kitchen saloon for one last night of stories before the building is transferred to its new owners.
Those readers who have loved this series for so long will treasure these stories, some of which Block incorporated into the Scudder novels, and many of which have not been readily available for some time. One can't help but dread that, in collecting these stories and in writing the last one, Block might be drawing the final curtain on Matt Scudder. Intellectually, one understands that no doubt sooner rather than later, his run will have to come to an end. But those of us who have grown up with Matthew Scudder and who have waited, often very impatiently, for the next Scudder book can only hope that the moment has not come yet. "One Last Night at Grogan's" would certainly be a fitting end to Matthew Scudder's career, but none of Block's legion of fans is ready to face that awful moment yet.
December 23, 2021
Lawrence Block gives us a single volume that collects all of the short stories written over the past 30 years about his alcoholic PI Matthew Scudder, along with one new story that serves as a fitting curtain call for the series.
Every one of these bad boys is a winner and goes down like a fine shot of whiskey. But if you enjoy a drunk that lasts, then the novels are the bourbon-laced coffee for you. Whether drinking or not drinking one day at a time, whether brooding about mortality or shooting the shit with his friends, whether giving people passes for being nothing better than human or administering his own creative and often brutally punk-rock form of justice, the Matthew Scudder novels are all well-written, nuanced mysteries that rank among the highest of the genre. Sharing the same esteemed heights as the works of Raymond Chandler and James Crumley, Block takes the conventions of the private eye novel and crafts endearing works of existentially thrilling and morally compelling literature.
‘Nuff said. Now here’s my own personal ranking of every novel in the series:
1.When the Sacred Ginmill Closes
2. Everybody Dies
3. A Dance at the Slaughterhouse
4. Eight Million Ways to Die
5. A Long Line of Dead Men
6. A Walk Among the Tombstones
7. A Ticket to the Boneyard
8. Out on the Cutting Edge
9. Sins of the Father
10. A Drop of the Hard Stuff
11. Even the Wicked
12. A Time to Murder and Create
13. In the Midst of Death
14. The Devil Knows Your Dead
15. A Stab in the Dark
16. Hope to Die
17. All the Flowers are Dying
Every one of these bad boys is a winner and goes down like a fine shot of whiskey. But if you enjoy a drunk that lasts, then the novels are the bourbon-laced coffee for you. Whether drinking or not drinking one day at a time, whether brooding about mortality or shooting the shit with his friends, whether giving people passes for being nothing better than human or administering his own creative and often brutally punk-rock form of justice, the Matthew Scudder novels are all well-written, nuanced mysteries that rank among the highest of the genre. Sharing the same esteemed heights as the works of Raymond Chandler and James Crumley, Block takes the conventions of the private eye novel and crafts endearing works of existentially thrilling and morally compelling literature.
‘Nuff said. Now here’s my own personal ranking of every novel in the series:
1.When the Sacred Ginmill Closes
2. Everybody Dies
3. A Dance at the Slaughterhouse
4. Eight Million Ways to Die
5. A Long Line of Dead Men
6. A Walk Among the Tombstones
7. A Ticket to the Boneyard
8. Out on the Cutting Edge
9. Sins of the Father
10. A Drop of the Hard Stuff
11. Even the Wicked
12. A Time to Murder and Create
13. In the Midst of Death
14. The Devil Knows Your Dead
15. A Stab in the Dark
16. Hope to Die
17. All the Flowers are Dying
February 3, 2016
The Night & The Music holds eleven Scudder short stories that cover a wide spectrum of his literary life. The first few tales take place while Matt was still sucking down bourbon and coffee while the latter bring us up to his marriage with Elaine as well as his friendship with Irish gangster Mick Ballou.
There’s a lot of great stuff in here, particularly a story that involves Scudder investigating the suspects of a robbery/murder titled By Dawn’s Early Light. It draws a lot of parallels to A Long Line of Dead Men, one of my personal favorites in the Scudder saga.
I found it pretty jarring to go back to Scudder’s beginnings. It goes to show just how much the character had grown over time. I’ve grown accustomed to Matt and Elaine living together as well as TJ popping up on occasion - both of which are elements missing from the first half of the book. Matt was just treading water in those early years, unsure of who or what he was supposed to be. Seeing him seemingly drift through life was like watching another person.
It goes without saying that “One Last Night at Grogan’s” is an important story that every fan of Block’s signature detective should seek out. While Block has on more than one occasion believed he was finished with Scudder, this one definitely gives you that feeling he’s content to put the series to bed.
The release of The Night & The Music is kind of like a best-selling musician releasing a compilation of their b-sides; those extra tracks that you wouldn’t find on a greatest hits album. That’s not to say they’re of lesser quality, they’re more for fans you would consider “completists”. After all, it’s nice to get all those “songs” in one easy-to-find “album”.
There’s a lot of great stuff in here, particularly a story that involves Scudder investigating the suspects of a robbery/murder titled By Dawn’s Early Light. It draws a lot of parallels to A Long Line of Dead Men, one of my personal favorites in the Scudder saga.
I found it pretty jarring to go back to Scudder’s beginnings. It goes to show just how much the character had grown over time. I’ve grown accustomed to Matt and Elaine living together as well as TJ popping up on occasion - both of which are elements missing from the first half of the book. Matt was just treading water in those early years, unsure of who or what he was supposed to be. Seeing him seemingly drift through life was like watching another person.
It goes without saying that “One Last Night at Grogan’s” is an important story that every fan of Block’s signature detective should seek out. While Block has on more than one occasion believed he was finished with Scudder, this one definitely gives you that feeling he’s content to put the series to bed.
The release of The Night & The Music is kind of like a best-selling musician releasing a compilation of their b-sides; those extra tracks that you wouldn’t find on a greatest hits album. That’s not to say they’re of lesser quality, they’re more for fans you would consider “completists”. After all, it’s nice to get all those “songs” in one easy-to-find “album”.
November 16, 2011
In these stories Matt Scudder looks back to his days as a patrolman and then a detective with the NYPD. If you never read a book in the Matt Scudder series this would be a good place to start and get a glimpse into his turbulent life. Block writes so well with this protagonist Matt a straight cut guy that has gathered many long time fans over the years. I found the short stories enjoyable and the mark of a crafted writer is apparent with stories that are light, enjoyable and easy to read through.
The first story Out of The Window has a nice little case of veritgo, well it seems Matt has a case of height fears like me, that old palpitations and dizziness you get when heights are in the picture. He needs to solve a case of a jumper a local dame he knows on the simplest terms, who was a waitress in a cafe he frequents. Suicide or murder?
The second story A Candle for The Bag Lady involves a local lady nicknamed the bag lady. She gets murdered and Matt finds himself on her will which is a strange occurrence. He digs deeper to find out that maybe she was acting pre-emptively, in needing of his services. Anyway he can't let this one go, he must find the bag ladies killer. Some locals thought she was one that didn't count and just a ghost in the community but her death proved she was a legacy, a character that made a Mark in peoples lives.
Batman's Helpers a story back when he and some patrolmen had to clean the streets of illegal merchandise. All the Batman shirts and goodies that were copyrighted and had not permission to be made was being taking out of circulation. Fold up your tables and quit shop.
In The Night and The Music, also the title of the collection, you wil find Matt and his wife reminiscing. Back in the days he used to local the Jazz bar all-night drinking. This time round they went to the Opera and revisited the Jazz bar where he did not drink alcohol.
The short story form has I hope been revived with the arrival of ebook technology.
Matt Scudder Debuts in The Sins of the Fathers (Matthew Scudder #1) by Lawrence Block
For a video of Lawrence Block on The late late show and a video where he was interviewed by Barbara Peters visit my webpage more2read.com They are some really funny interviews on The Late Show and Craig Ferguson
The first story Out of The Window has a nice little case of veritgo, well it seems Matt has a case of height fears like me, that old palpitations and dizziness you get when heights are in the picture. He needs to solve a case of a jumper a local dame he knows on the simplest terms, who was a waitress in a cafe he frequents. Suicide or murder?
The second story A Candle for The Bag Lady involves a local lady nicknamed the bag lady. She gets murdered and Matt finds himself on her will which is a strange occurrence. He digs deeper to find out that maybe she was acting pre-emptively, in needing of his services. Anyway he can't let this one go, he must find the bag ladies killer. Some locals thought she was one that didn't count and just a ghost in the community but her death proved she was a legacy, a character that made a Mark in peoples lives.
Batman's Helpers a story back when he and some patrolmen had to clean the streets of illegal merchandise. All the Batman shirts and goodies that were copyrighted and had not permission to be made was being taking out of circulation. Fold up your tables and quit shop.
In The Night and The Music, also the title of the collection, you wil find Matt and his wife reminiscing. Back in the days he used to local the Jazz bar all-night drinking. This time round they went to the Opera and revisited the Jazz bar where he did not drink alcohol.
The short story form has I hope been revived with the arrival of ebook technology.
Matt Scudder Debuts in The Sins of the Fathers (Matthew Scudder #1) by Lawrence Block
For a video of Lawrence Block on The late late show and a video where he was interviewed by Barbara Peters visit my webpage more2read.com They are some really funny interviews on The Late Show and Craig Ferguson
January 21, 2022
I received an ecopy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.
This was a satisfying read, as a collection of Matthew Scudder stories set at various stages of his career/life.
While I feel this collection was best suited for longtime readers of Scudder's cases, this was a fine introduction for new readers, giving us a glimpse of this investigator/ex-cop and the style that Block uses with him.
I was captivated enough in the overall character and writing style to be drawn into the novel series that these stories are based on, so with that it did its job.
This was a satisfying read, as a collection of Matthew Scudder stories set at various stages of his career/life.
While I feel this collection was best suited for longtime readers of Scudder's cases, this was a fine introduction for new readers, giving us a glimpse of this investigator/ex-cop and the style that Block uses with him.
I was captivated enough in the overall character and writing style to be drawn into the novel series that these stories are based on, so with that it did its job.
May 2, 2022
Maybe she caught her own killer. Maybe he caught himself, as everyone does. Maybe no man's an island and maybe everybody is.
This is a collection of eleven pieces of short fiction about Matthew Scudder. Scudder was once a police detective, who had a wife and two sons. Then he accidentally shot and killed a little girl and his life changed.
Scudder resigned from the force, left his family, and spent much of his time drinking. He also did some investigating, not officially, but looking into matters for folks who would show their appreciation by giving Scudder money. Eventually he gave up drinking and married a woman he had met years earlier, when she had been a sex worker.
Some of these stories take place when Scudder was still drinking, others are from later years. A couple of the later stories refer back to experiences from Scudder's time on the police force.
Four of the stories are essentially conventional mysteries involving killings, but they all have one other thing in common; in all these stories, the killers confess to Scudder. I don't believe that this is mentioned anywhere in the book, but clearly Lawrence Block, author of the Scudder tales, liked using that situation.
Scudder's reactions to the confessions differ from story to story. And that leads to a brief comment on one thing that I dislike about the works of Lawrence Block. Some of Block's continuing lead characters, such as Keller the personable hit man and the homicidal attorney Martin H. Ehrengraf, are people that readers should not like - but Block makes their despicable actions acceptable. In one of these stories, Scudder does something that should be reprehensible, but due both to the circumstances and to Scudder's likeability, most readers (including me) will probably not object - but we should.
The stories in this collection are:
"Out the Window"
A young woman is dead after falling from a window. The police think this was suicide; the girl's sister is convinced it was murder. Scudder suspects that the sister is right.
"A Candle for the Bag Lady"
A neighborhood woman whom Scudder believed to be homeless is murdered, with no apparent motive and no suspects. She leaves a number of small bequests, one of them being for Scudder. Scudder decides to look into the case.
"By the Dawn's Early Light"
The wife of an acquaintance of Scudder's is murdered, evidently during a robbery. The police arrest two young men, who admit to the robbery but not the murder. Scudder is hired by his acquaintance to find any damaging information about the accused men. This story won an Edgar Award.
"Batman's Helpers"
Nobody dies in this one. Scudder is one of a small group of men hired to go through New York streets looking for people selling unlicensed material relating to the character Batman; they confiscate such material, even though they have no legal authority to do so, so that the merchandise may be destroyed. Most of the street vendors selling this stuff are immigrants, many not able to speak English, and Scudder feels like a bully for hassling them.
"The Merciful Angel of Death"
A man who runs a hospice for AIDS patients contacts Scudder. He believes that some of the patients are dying sooner than expected, all after being visited by the same woman. He wants to make sure that the woman is not killing the patients.
"The Night and the Music"
A very brief story with no crime involved. Scudder and his second wife Elaine attend an opera. Not wanting the evening to end afterward, they spend the night in clubs listening to jazz and recalling how they first met.
"Looking for David"
Scudder and Elaine are in Florence. Scudder runs into a man whom he had arrested years earlier for the particularly gruesome murder of the man's gay lover. Scudder had never known why the killing had taken place; the man explains it to him.
"Let's Get Lost"
A look backwards to a time when Scudder was a married police officer. Elaine, then a hooker known by Scudder, contacts him to help a man who was one of her clients. Another man had been stabbed to death in the client's apartment while five men were playing cards. The four men who had been with the now-dead man all say that someone they didn't see stabbed the fifth man in the doorway to the apartment. Scudder is skeptical.
"A Moment of Wrong Thinking"
Another look at Scudder's police career. He and his partner go to a death scene. A woman says that her husband had been joking with her and their children and had suddenly and seemingly deliberately shot himself in the head. Scudder's partner might have taken action to help out.
"Mick Ballou Looks at the Blank Screen"
Another brief story with no crime. Scudder meets with his close friend Mick, bar owner and gangster. They discuss the recently aired last episode of the television show The Sopranos. Then Mick tells Scudder that he wants to ask him for a favor.
"One Last Night at Grogan's"
A farewell. The series went on after this story appeared but this might have been intended to be the ending. Scudder, Elaine, and Mick and his wife sit in what has been Mick's bar on the night after the official closing, reminiscing.
Most of the story of Matt Scudder takes place in a series of novels, but these stories are by no means negligible. They stand well alone and blend here into a fine book, an important entry in an excellent series.
This is a collection of eleven pieces of short fiction about Matthew Scudder. Scudder was once a police detective, who had a wife and two sons. Then he accidentally shot and killed a little girl and his life changed.
Scudder resigned from the force, left his family, and spent much of his time drinking. He also did some investigating, not officially, but looking into matters for folks who would show their appreciation by giving Scudder money. Eventually he gave up drinking and married a woman he had met years earlier, when she had been a sex worker.
Some of these stories take place when Scudder was still drinking, others are from later years. A couple of the later stories refer back to experiences from Scudder's time on the police force.
Four of the stories are essentially conventional mysteries involving killings, but they all have one other thing in common; in all these stories, the killers confess to Scudder. I don't believe that this is mentioned anywhere in the book, but clearly Lawrence Block, author of the Scudder tales, liked using that situation.
Scudder's reactions to the confessions differ from story to story. And that leads to a brief comment on one thing that I dislike about the works of Lawrence Block. Some of Block's continuing lead characters, such as Keller the personable hit man and the homicidal attorney Martin H. Ehrengraf, are people that readers should not like - but Block makes their despicable actions acceptable. In one of these stories, Scudder does something that should be reprehensible, but due both to the circumstances and to Scudder's likeability, most readers (including me) will probably not object - but we should.
The stories in this collection are:
"Out the Window"
A young woman is dead after falling from a window. The police think this was suicide; the girl's sister is convinced it was murder. Scudder suspects that the sister is right.
"A Candle for the Bag Lady"
A neighborhood woman whom Scudder believed to be homeless is murdered, with no apparent motive and no suspects. She leaves a number of small bequests, one of them being for Scudder. Scudder decides to look into the case.
"By the Dawn's Early Light"
The wife of an acquaintance of Scudder's is murdered, evidently during a robbery. The police arrest two young men, who admit to the robbery but not the murder. Scudder is hired by his acquaintance to find any damaging information about the accused men. This story won an Edgar Award.
"Batman's Helpers"
Nobody dies in this one. Scudder is one of a small group of men hired to go through New York streets looking for people selling unlicensed material relating to the character Batman; they confiscate such material, even though they have no legal authority to do so, so that the merchandise may be destroyed. Most of the street vendors selling this stuff are immigrants, many not able to speak English, and Scudder feels like a bully for hassling them.
"The Merciful Angel of Death"
A man who runs a hospice for AIDS patients contacts Scudder. He believes that some of the patients are dying sooner than expected, all after being visited by the same woman. He wants to make sure that the woman is not killing the patients.
"The Night and the Music"
A very brief story with no crime involved. Scudder and his second wife Elaine attend an opera. Not wanting the evening to end afterward, they spend the night in clubs listening to jazz and recalling how they first met.
"Looking for David"
Scudder and Elaine are in Florence. Scudder runs into a man whom he had arrested years earlier for the particularly gruesome murder of the man's gay lover. Scudder had never known why the killing had taken place; the man explains it to him.
"Let's Get Lost"
A look backwards to a time when Scudder was a married police officer. Elaine, then a hooker known by Scudder, contacts him to help a man who was one of her clients. Another man had been stabbed to death in the client's apartment while five men were playing cards. The four men who had been with the now-dead man all say that someone they didn't see stabbed the fifth man in the doorway to the apartment. Scudder is skeptical.
"A Moment of Wrong Thinking"
Another look at Scudder's police career. He and his partner go to a death scene. A woman says that her husband had been joking with her and their children and had suddenly and seemingly deliberately shot himself in the head. Scudder's partner might have taken action to help out.
"Mick Ballou Looks at the Blank Screen"
Another brief story with no crime. Scudder meets with his close friend Mick, bar owner and gangster. They discuss the recently aired last episode of the television show The Sopranos. Then Mick tells Scudder that he wants to ask him for a favor.
"One Last Night at Grogan's"
A farewell. The series went on after this story appeared but this might have been intended to be the ending. Scudder, Elaine, and Mick and his wife sit in what has been Mick's bar on the night after the official closing, reminiscing.
Most of the story of Matt Scudder takes place in a series of novels, but these stories are by no means negligible. They stand well alone and blend here into a fine book, an important entry in an excellent series.
July 21, 2017
My first Block experience turned out better than I expected. I"m often suspicious of genre writers who crank out "at-the-top-of-his-form" bestsellers, assuming most are probably formulaic hack jobs. I checked out audio hoping for diverting entertainment while running errands and cooking meals. Got that and then some. Scudder carries the usual conventions of PI -- world-weary ex-cop, recovering alcoholic -- without becoming a walking cliche. I appreciated his dogged approach but lowkey demeanor. He doesn't huff and puff and blow people down or away, but he makes it clear he's not going away either. Nice range of approaches and topics in 11 stories, from the classic whodunnit to quietly reflective pieces on larger issues like AIDS in "Merciful Angel of Death," which included one of more moving death scenes I've come across in this genre or any genre. "Looking for David" was only dud, with former killer telling his life story to Scudder years later. Got so bored I skipped ahead to next story. A spare, subtle but impressive literary quality to some stories. Block does a good job narrating his stories, though a few times it was hard to keep track of which character was talking. Biggest compliment I can give is that it makes me want to go back and read / listen to some of the Scudder novels. 3.5 stars.
ps In last two tracks, Block explains how he came to write these stories, which cover many years, and puts them context of all his work. Most interesting peek at a writer's working process over arc of a career.
ps In last two tracks, Block explains how he came to write these stories, which cover many years, and puts them context of all his work. Most interesting peek at a writer's working process over arc of a career.
December 9, 2011
Really excellent collection of Matt Scudder stories. My favorite, I think, was the one in which Scudder is approached by a lawyer who gives him a check for twelve-hundred dollars, the bequest of a bag lady Scudder didn't know, who had been murdered several weeks before. In his inimitable way, Matt seeks out why he and others might have been given the money and while he has really little to do actively with discovering who committed the murder, he is the instrument of its solution. Very bleak.
The stories portray different periods of Scudder's career and evolution as a human being. Some have suggested that the last story may be the last in the Scudder series. I would hope not, for Block's genius is quite apparent in this collection
The stories portray different periods of Scudder's career and evolution as a human being. Some have suggested that the last story may be the last in the Scudder series. I would hope not, for Block's genius is quite apparent in this collection
March 24, 2015
Almost 4 stars, but I didn't care for the reader - Block himself. His voice just doesn't work for me, although it isn't bad. The stories are great overall. I like them far more than the books. Block dives right in & makes a good point in his low-keyed way. I think that was why I liked Hit Man so much, too. The afterword was wonderful.
On to listen to part 2 - a separate library audio book download, but actually just a continuation of this one, so I won't confuse things by creating a second book here. The afterword was identical.
On to listen to part 2 - a separate library audio book download, but actually just a continuation of this one, so I won't confuse things by creating a second book here. The afterword was identical.
April 22, 2022
Like all short story collections and/or anthologies - I liked some stories more than others. Typically this would mean 3-Stars. However, this one is getting 4-Stars for the nostalgia and the closure. The stories take place along varying points in the series timeline, but the final stories, and Block's "about these stories" piece at the end, not only provide a nostalgic look back for fans and provide some background to the series as a whole, but it also neatly closes the loop on our journey with Scudder.
I glommed my way through this series starting in January 2022 and here we are now, near the end of April. It's been quite a ride.
I glommed my way through this series starting in January 2022 and here we are now, near the end of April. It's been quite a ride.
September 10, 2015
Last week I sat down to watch the movie A Walk Among The Tombstones with my wife and my dad. My wife didn’t manage to stay long – the level of violence that is suggested is high and so her early departure didn’t surprise me. My dad fell asleep for a while, but that’s got nothing to do with the quality of the film. I managed to stay for the duration and enjoyed my time with Liam Neeson et al. Overall, I’d say that it’s a pretty solid film. Neeson does a great job as Scudder and if you like action and detectives, this should work for you. Above all, I was reminded of how good a book Tombstones is. The Scudder series is really excellent and it wasn’t really a surprise to me that the film didn’t quite do the plotline justice.
During my holiday, I read a Scudder that was new to me called The Night And The Music. This one, a little like the film above, is something of a tangent from the main body of novels. It’s a collection of stories about the detective where he retells incidents from his past. They’re told in a fairly gentle style, as if been told over a drink in a bar somewhere after hours. It’s almost conversational and that works very well in terms of grabbing the attention. What you don’t really get is the meaty plot or the tension of a novel. In place of that, however, is a collection of rather playful and almost old-fashioned mysteries.
My own favourite was entitled The Merciful Angel Of Death. Scudder is hired by a nursing home to investigate a mystery visitor who has a knack of being the final companion of many of the dying. What I think this piece illustrates, apart from the high level of writing, is the general dexterity of Lawrence Block’s mind. He finds interesting plotlines in the strangest places. Other pieces involve the collection of counterfeit clothing from around the vendors of New York, a suicide and the murder of an old and very generous bag-lady.
For fans of Scudder, this is a really nice accompanying piece to have. It may not carry quite the weight of the novels, but it adds another dimension to the man. To those who haven’t been there yet, try these on for size. I reckon you’ll really enjoy them and if you do, I’d suggest diving right in with The Sins Of The Fathers (US) (you’ll thank me later, you really will).
During my holiday, I read a Scudder that was new to me called The Night And The Music. This one, a little like the film above, is something of a tangent from the main body of novels. It’s a collection of stories about the detective where he retells incidents from his past. They’re told in a fairly gentle style, as if been told over a drink in a bar somewhere after hours. It’s almost conversational and that works very well in terms of grabbing the attention. What you don’t really get is the meaty plot or the tension of a novel. In place of that, however, is a collection of rather playful and almost old-fashioned mysteries.
My own favourite was entitled The Merciful Angel Of Death. Scudder is hired by a nursing home to investigate a mystery visitor who has a knack of being the final companion of many of the dying. What I think this piece illustrates, apart from the high level of writing, is the general dexterity of Lawrence Block’s mind. He finds interesting plotlines in the strangest places. Other pieces involve the collection of counterfeit clothing from around the vendors of New York, a suicide and the murder of an old and very generous bag-lady.
For fans of Scudder, this is a really nice accompanying piece to have. It may not carry quite the weight of the novels, but it adds another dimension to the man. To those who haven’t been there yet, try these on for size. I reckon you’ll really enjoy them and if you do, I’d suggest diving right in with The Sins Of The Fathers (US) (you’ll thank me later, you really will).
May 10, 2020
I never really liked short stories but I like Matthew Scudder and, aside from a novella, this is all that I have left to get from his tale. And I enjoyed each story on its own in some way. I do wish the Mick Ballou ones were longer as they really served to be a coda on Matt’s life but they weren’t mysteries so I guess it’s just as well. The novella and that’s it. Life goes on.
July 2, 2020
Short stories of which some were really good, others just okay. My first time reading Lawrence Block. Maybe read some more of his stuff but he is at the bottom of my list of Want to Read right now.
June 11, 2012
Eleven Matt Scudder stories, previously uncollected until now. This book has the distinction of being the only e-book not in the public domain that I have ever purchased, despite having owned a Nook for years. Now, keep in mind that everything Scudder-related is at least in some way interesting to me (at this point in my association with Scudder and his extended circle, it’s like going through a photo album with a cool elderly uncle as he reminisces, including the same familiar turns of phrase that have been used before). While a couple of these stories are throwaways, most attain that perfect air of world-weary castaway-turned-bemused-husband that marks the later novels.
“Out the Window.” The longest story and the closest thing to a typical mystery story: a locked door suicide that Matt suspects is murder. Excellent.
“A Candle For the Bag Lady.” A bag lady is killed brutally and leaves money to Scudder, who is naturally driven to find out why, and who did it. A tour of the seedy side of Scudder’s world, and very touching.
“By the Dawn’s Early Light.” Matt is hired to find information that will help a man accused of killing his wife, only to find he’s a pawn in someone’s game. Scudder’s brand of rough justice ensues. Quite clever plotting.
“Batman’s Helpers.” A look at what makes Scudder tick, morally. This story is deeper than it appear to be, with a rather incisive dialogue on what makes right.
“The Merciful Angel Of Death.” Matt is asked to find out what connection a woman has to dying AIDS patients. This one is a bit hard to swallow, and doesn’t showcase Matt’s strengths. Probably the weakest in the collection.
“The Night And the Music.” Scudder being domestic. Sweet, but frothy.
“Looking For David.” Vacationing in Italy, Matt bumps into a murderer who finally tells him why he killed his lover. Spooky and clever, though I guessed it before Matt, who seems rather dull in this story.
“Let’s Get Lost.” In his early days on the force, Matt does a favor for call girl Elaine by investigating the suspicious death of a card player. Block leads the readers back and forth with this one; it’s also soaked in Scudder’s bittersweet nostalgia. Possibly the best of the bunch.
“A Moment Of Wrong Thinking.” A flashback to Matt’s early days working with Detective Mafferty, who taught Matt to suspect everyone and take money when it’s offered. A simple suicide case turns out to be… possibly more.
“Mick Ballou Looks At the Blank Screen.” An unnecessary throwaway.
“One Last At Grogan’s.” Not exactly a thrilling tale, but damn touching (Grogan’s is closing, Mick having settled down to domesticity and old age), and it’s always fun when original Hard Man, Mick Ballou, is on the page.
“Out the Window.” The longest story and the closest thing to a typical mystery story: a locked door suicide that Matt suspects is murder. Excellent.
“A Candle For the Bag Lady.” A bag lady is killed brutally and leaves money to Scudder, who is naturally driven to find out why, and who did it. A tour of the seedy side of Scudder’s world, and very touching.
“By the Dawn’s Early Light.” Matt is hired to find information that will help a man accused of killing his wife, only to find he’s a pawn in someone’s game. Scudder’s brand of rough justice ensues. Quite clever plotting.
“Batman’s Helpers.” A look at what makes Scudder tick, morally. This story is deeper than it appear to be, with a rather incisive dialogue on what makes right.
“The Merciful Angel Of Death.” Matt is asked to find out what connection a woman has to dying AIDS patients. This one is a bit hard to swallow, and doesn’t showcase Matt’s strengths. Probably the weakest in the collection.
“The Night And the Music.” Scudder being domestic. Sweet, but frothy.
“Looking For David.” Vacationing in Italy, Matt bumps into a murderer who finally tells him why he killed his lover. Spooky and clever, though I guessed it before Matt, who seems rather dull in this story.
“Let’s Get Lost.” In his early days on the force, Matt does a favor for call girl Elaine by investigating the suspicious death of a card player. Block leads the readers back and forth with this one; it’s also soaked in Scudder’s bittersweet nostalgia. Possibly the best of the bunch.
“A Moment Of Wrong Thinking.” A flashback to Matt’s early days working with Detective Mafferty, who taught Matt to suspect everyone and take money when it’s offered. A simple suicide case turns out to be… possibly more.
“Mick Ballou Looks At the Blank Screen.” An unnecessary throwaway.
“One Last At Grogan’s.” Not exactly a thrilling tale, but damn touching (Grogan’s is closing, Mick having settled down to domesticity and old age), and it’s always fun when original Hard Man, Mick Ballou, is on the page.
November 15, 2016
4* I am delighted to have found another brilliant, very skillful storyteller who has created an engaging character and a series I hope to get into. Since I have nearly run out of audiobooks from my library, I am surprised it took this long to come across one by Lawrence Block. This book is short fiction and gives a good picture of Scudder in various stages of life. The pieces also give a rather startling view of New York police over time, which I think reflect changes occurring more broadly in law enforcement over those years. At the end, the author, who also did a fine job of the narration, gives us some information about the various pieces. I enjoyed this as much as the stories. I’m desperately hoping that my library will increase its collection as I’d gladly sink myself into more in this series in particular, and in any event will be seeking more from this author. Good one!
January 2, 2012
For us long standing Matthew Scudder fans, this is a superb treat. Very few mystery writers can weave a story as well as Block, and these stories are like finding some long forgotten gems stashed at the bottom of the trunk in the attic, even though the last story was written specifically for this collection. A bit of nostalgia, and a bit of the creature make this time well spent with old friends.
October 2, 2011
A quite satisfying set of stories about Matthew Scudder. They serve as both a companion to the novels and a good introduction for those unfamiliar with them. For me, it was the latter. In reading, I stopped long enough to order the first two novels.
Eleven stories, not all of them crime. Some nice character pieces among them, one written especially for this collection.
Worth a look.
Eleven stories, not all of them crime. Some nice character pieces among them, one written especially for this collection.
Worth a look.
July 21, 2013
Well that's me read all 17 Scudder books and this short story collection. Not that into short stories so this wasn't my favourite but still essential reading as part of what was one of my favourite series ever. Just wish there were more of them...
January 13, 2016
I like the Scudder series and this one's up to par. Well performed by the author.
Want to read
November 14, 2015I need to find time for a re-reading.
November 26, 2021
Matt Scudder is easily the heaviest and grittiest of Lawrence Block’s series characters, as well as one of the most complex. He was also slightly subversive, with Block recasting the classic hard-boiled, hard-drinking PI trope into an ex-cop struggling with alcoholism and seeking some kind of redemption who somehow always finds a case to solve despite not having a PI license or even a gun, which he refuses to carry. Having read most of the novels in the series, it’s been interesting watching the character evolve from alcoholism to sobriety as he puts his life back together.
This anthology – which collects all of the Scudder short stories Block wrote off and on over the years, and features two all-new stories – is sort a whirlwind tour of Scudder’s evolution, from his alcoholic years to his gentler married years, and even explores his earlier career as a cop. Consequently, the stories themselves range from straight crime stories to vignettes and reminisces where murder and crime are offscreen and/or subjects of conversation rather than the central plotline. The stories are chronological mainly in terms of the order in which they were published, yet there’s a kind of logical flow to them, although that logic might be more apparent to people who have read the series.
That said, I wouldn’t say this is for fans only – the individual stories are worth reading, as most of Block’s stuff is. On the other hand, the context of the series might be helpful in dealing with the more racist elements in the stories – Block is no racist, but he’s never shied away from the racist realities of NYC, especially in the 70s, and especially when it comes to the NYPD, although he’s never gone to the extremes of, say, James Ellroy. And while Scudder is not racist himself, some readers might be put off by his failure to actively denounce it. But then Scudder’s world has always been morally complex – his best friend is a murderous Irish gangster boss, for goodness sake. Anyway, I read the novels ages ago, so it was a nice trip down memory lane for me.
This anthology – which collects all of the Scudder short stories Block wrote off and on over the years, and features two all-new stories – is sort a whirlwind tour of Scudder’s evolution, from his alcoholic years to his gentler married years, and even explores his earlier career as a cop. Consequently, the stories themselves range from straight crime stories to vignettes and reminisces where murder and crime are offscreen and/or subjects of conversation rather than the central plotline. The stories are chronological mainly in terms of the order in which they were published, yet there’s a kind of logical flow to them, although that logic might be more apparent to people who have read the series.
That said, I wouldn’t say this is for fans only – the individual stories are worth reading, as most of Block’s stuff is. On the other hand, the context of the series might be helpful in dealing with the more racist elements in the stories – Block is no racist, but he’s never shied away from the racist realities of NYC, especially in the 70s, and especially when it comes to the NYPD, although he’s never gone to the extremes of, say, James Ellroy. And while Scudder is not racist himself, some readers might be put off by his failure to actively denounce it. But then Scudder’s world has always been morally complex – his best friend is a murderous Irish gangster boss, for goodness sake. Anyway, I read the novels ages ago, so it was a nice trip down memory lane for me.
March 11, 2025
The Night and the Music, Lawrence Block [Telemachus Press, 2011].
A collection of stories featuring former NYPD cop-turned-unlicensed-private-eye Matt Scudder, including:
“Out the Window,” when a server at a bar Matt frequents goes out a 47 story window, the police deem it an open-and-shut case of suicide. The victim’s sister hires Matt to dig up evidence of murder. (Originally appeared in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine.)
“A Candle for the Bag Lady,” when a bag lady—who was neither homeless nor as destitute as she appeared—leaves Matt Scudder a small inheritance, Scudder feels compelled to investigate her brutal murder. (Originally appeared in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine.)
“By the Dawn’s Early Light,” Scudder helps an acquaintance beat a murder rap, and that’s when his troubles begin…
“Batman’s Helpers,” Scudder is hired as part of a crew that confiscates bootleg Batman merchandise from street vendors…
“Looking for David,” while vacationing with his wife, Elaine, in Venice, Scudder has an improbably amiable encounter with a man he once arrested for murder…
“One Last Night at Grogan’s,” in a story original to the collection, Scudder’s friend Mick Ballou, closes his bar Grogan’s, a Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood institution…
***
Lawrence Block is a prolific author of crime fiction, as well as books on the art of writing. His most recent work includes The Girl with the Deep Blue Eyes and a revised version of Into the Night (with Cornell Woolrich), both published by Hard Case Crime.
A collection of stories featuring former NYPD cop-turned-unlicensed-private-eye Matt Scudder, including:
“Out the Window,” when a server at a bar Matt frequents goes out a 47 story window, the police deem it an open-and-shut case of suicide. The victim’s sister hires Matt to dig up evidence of murder. (Originally appeared in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine.)
“A Candle for the Bag Lady,” when a bag lady—who was neither homeless nor as destitute as she appeared—leaves Matt Scudder a small inheritance, Scudder feels compelled to investigate her brutal murder. (Originally appeared in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine.)
“By the Dawn’s Early Light,” Scudder helps an acquaintance beat a murder rap, and that’s when his troubles begin…
“Batman’s Helpers,” Scudder is hired as part of a crew that confiscates bootleg Batman merchandise from street vendors…
“Looking for David,” while vacationing with his wife, Elaine, in Venice, Scudder has an improbably amiable encounter with a man he once arrested for murder…
“One Last Night at Grogan’s,” in a story original to the collection, Scudder’s friend Mick Ballou, closes his bar Grogan’s, a Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood institution…
***
Lawrence Block is a prolific author of crime fiction, as well as books on the art of writing. His most recent work includes The Girl with the Deep Blue Eyes and a revised version of Into the Night (with Cornell Woolrich), both published by Hard Case Crime.
January 15, 2024
This collection was quite a bit better than what I was expecting.
Scudder's character works so well in the novel form, I was dubious about him in short stories. But they were almost all pretty good, and I was sad to finish, especially as I have only one more Scudder book to read, unless Lawrence Block writes another.
Scudder's character works so well in the novel form, I was dubious about him in short stories. But they were almost all pretty good, and I was sad to finish, especially as I have only one more Scudder book to read, unless Lawrence Block writes another.
May 3, 2020
Perfect for anyone who's read everything else Scudder and needs a little bit more.
July 8, 2023
I’m not big on short story collections, but I’ve always enjoyed the Scudder mysteries. My enjoyment of the full-blown novels offsets my reluctance at dealing with short stories enough that I came into this with high expectations. I wasn’t disappointed.
There are 11 stories in this collection, and I found all of them highly readable. In “Out the Window,” Scudder must prove that a young waitress didn’t commit suicide. This is one of the earlier stories, and it was good reading.
“A Candle for the Bag Lady” is a great story about the death of an old woman who lived as though she was poor when she was not. Scudder must figure out why he got $1,200 from her estate.
“By the Dawn’s Early Light” is a story wherein Scudder finds a way to do justice despite the careful plan of a man who would prefer that justice never rear its head. The solution is clever enough you can read it and enjoy the ending.
“Batman’s Helpers” was an ok entry. Scudder gets work trying to break the counterfeit products trade in New York City. It was ok.
“The Merciful Angel of Death” recreates the fear and sadness of the early AIDS years. A woman deliberately sits with the sickest of AIDS patients in a hospice, and when they die rapidly, Scudder wonders if she’s helping them. You get to decide for yourself if you read this.
“The Night and the Music” is a loving tribute to New York City’s jazz scene and allows Scudder to relive memories of his younger days. It’s at once melancholy and hopeful. I get how ridiculous that combination seems. You have to read it to understand why I picked those two states of mind.
“Looking for David” happens outside the United States, and it involves a most unfortunate murder confession.
“Let’s Get Lost” is a grisly little tale in which Scudder must fix a stabbing murder so that it looks like an accident.
“A Moment of Wrong Thinking” is a great story of compassion and decency. Scudder and his patrolman partner manipulate a suicide situation until it looks like … well, like a moment of wrong thinking. Read this.
“Mick Ballou Looks at a Blank Screen” is a short but interesting reflection on life and the afterlife.
Finally, “One Last Night at Grogan’s” is a kind of living obituary and tribute to Scudder and the series. This story ought to be how the series ends. It’s a touching tribute to friendship, to change, and to the end of an era. I nearly blinked back a tear. It just felt like that final episode of a long-running beloved series you hate to see end.
This is a short, engaging book. It captivated me on a Friday evening between the evening meal and lights out. The author narrates the audio edition, which gives the book great charm and authenticity.
In summary, if you enjoyed the Matthew Scudder series over the years, (and it’s rare to find a mystery lover who doesn’t”, this little story collection will be highly satisfying.
There are 11 stories in this collection, and I found all of them highly readable. In “Out the Window,” Scudder must prove that a young waitress didn’t commit suicide. This is one of the earlier stories, and it was good reading.
“A Candle for the Bag Lady” is a great story about the death of an old woman who lived as though she was poor when she was not. Scudder must figure out why he got $1,200 from her estate.
“By the Dawn’s Early Light” is a story wherein Scudder finds a way to do justice despite the careful plan of a man who would prefer that justice never rear its head. The solution is clever enough you can read it and enjoy the ending.
“Batman’s Helpers” was an ok entry. Scudder gets work trying to break the counterfeit products trade in New York City. It was ok.
“The Merciful Angel of Death” recreates the fear and sadness of the early AIDS years. A woman deliberately sits with the sickest of AIDS patients in a hospice, and when they die rapidly, Scudder wonders if she’s helping them. You get to decide for yourself if you read this.
“The Night and the Music” is a loving tribute to New York City’s jazz scene and allows Scudder to relive memories of his younger days. It’s at once melancholy and hopeful. I get how ridiculous that combination seems. You have to read it to understand why I picked those two states of mind.
“Looking for David” happens outside the United States, and it involves a most unfortunate murder confession.
“Let’s Get Lost” is a grisly little tale in which Scudder must fix a stabbing murder so that it looks like an accident.
“A Moment of Wrong Thinking” is a great story of compassion and decency. Scudder and his patrolman partner manipulate a suicide situation until it looks like … well, like a moment of wrong thinking. Read this.
“Mick Ballou Looks at a Blank Screen” is a short but interesting reflection on life and the afterlife.
Finally, “One Last Night at Grogan’s” is a kind of living obituary and tribute to Scudder and the series. This story ought to be how the series ends. It’s a touching tribute to friendship, to change, and to the end of an era. I nearly blinked back a tear. It just felt like that final episode of a long-running beloved series you hate to see end.
This is a short, engaging book. It captivated me on a Friday evening between the evening meal and lights out. The author narrates the audio edition, which gives the book great charm and authenticity.
In summary, if you enjoyed the Matthew Scudder series over the years, (and it’s rare to find a mystery lover who doesn’t”, this little story collection will be highly satisfying.
July 4, 2015
The Night and the Music is a selection of short stories and episodes of Matthew Scudder stories that never made it into the books. Lawrence Block is a longtime favorite of mine and I absolutely enjoyed the stories when I finished this collection. The first section of the book covers episodes when Scudder is still drinking. I found it hard to go back to this earlier Matthew Scudder. I also find the short story form challenging and less satisfying much of the time, so it was a bit of a bumpy intro to this book. But the balance of the book positively sings and I had a fine time settling back into Scudder's life and times. I recommend this read to any fan of Lawrence Block, and especially to any Matt Scudder fans. But I think he's wrong about the ending of The Sopranos. Do read it for yourself and decide.
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