Underdog

by Michael Z. Lewin

Ross Macdonald called Michael Z. Lewin a "writer with style and sensibility and wit...He has a fine poetic sense of detail which lights up every page." In this remarkable novel Lewin breaks new ground in the realm of crime with the character of Jan Moro. Moro is different from most crime fiction protagonists. He's smaller. He smells worse. He eats behind restaurants. Jan Moro is homeless - by choice, by circumstance, and by the madness that gnaws at the edge of all our lives. Running from his past, Jan is determined to strike it rich; he becomes obsessed with meeting one of Indianapolis' most notorious entrepreneurs, Billy Cigar. Cigar made his mark by murdering people in South America and now lives in the dusty emerald city of Indianapolis. But before Jan can weasel his way into Cigar's good graces, the cops intervene, and Jan talks his way into becoming a paid informant. Suddenly Jan is working both sides of the fence, and his own side as well. From an embittered, lovelorn undercover officer to a beautiful woman who is being used to set Cigar up, Moro navigates a sea of murderous sharks and hapless bait - baffling, annoying, and astonishing all who come face to face with him. If he manages to get out of the water he now he will either be rich...or dead. A comic Ironweed, a Maltese Falcon for the urban America of the 1990s, Underdog is a truly amazing novel. And Jan Moro is surely one of the most unforgettable characters ever to appear in mystery fiction.

Genres: Mystery, Crime

256 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1993

About the author

Michael Zinn Lewin is an American writer of mystery fiction perhaps best known for his series about Albert Samson, a distinctly low-keyed, non-hardboiled private detective who plies his trade in Indianapolis, Indiana. Lewin himself grew up in Indianapolis, but after graduating from Harvard and living for a few years in New York City, has lived in England for the last 40 years. Much of his fiction continues to be set in Indianapolis, including a secondary series about Leroy Powder, a policeman who frequently appears in the Samson novels, generally in a semi-confrontational manner.

Another series, however, is set in Bath, England, where Lewin now lives. This features the Lunghis who run their detective agency as a family business. So far there are three novels and nine short stories about them.

Lewin has also written a number of stand-alone novels. Some have been set in Indianapolis and others elsewhere. His latest novel, Confessions of a Discontented Deity, is even set partly in Heaven. A satire, it breaks from Lewin's history of genre fiction.

Lewin is the son of Leonard C. Lewin, author of the 1967 bestselling satire The Report from Iron Mountain: On the Possibility and Desirability of Peace.

Reviews

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Probably one of the more bizarre tales I’ve read recently but certainly worth it. Imagine Tim Dorsey’s Serge Storms with mental health issues. Well more than usual anyway. Well written and neatly structured.

[Maddy · Rating 4 out of 5]

RATING: 4.25

[wally · Rating 3 out of 5]

finished 1st august 2024 good read three stars i liked it kindle library loaner first from lewin. entertaining story about a younger man older boy who considers himself an entrepreneur though he is also homeless and witnesses a scene that he relates to law enforcement. i've already looked for some more from lewin but despite access to more than a half dozen digital libraries there are no more available. based on a short investigation he has a number of stories that sound like i'd enjoy. anticipation...as carly sings.

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 stars marked up to 2 by Goodreads.

Written by the author of the "Albert Sampson" and "Leroy Powder" detective books, not as good and I wouldn't read another with this protagonist (if there are any more). The hero is a homeless man named Jan Moro. Although the book is humorous at first, in total it's improbable and contrived.

[Jose Coba · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would venture to say that the author was inspired by the picaresque Spanish novel _El Lazarillo de Tormes_. I found the protagonist a mix of innocence and worldliness mixed with pride and poverty; of sensitivity mixed with strength of character. All seeming contradictions, yet made to work seamlessly by the author. An entertaining read!

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a surprisingly good and enjoyable book this is! Jan Moro is self-employed in Indianapolis (read: is homeless). He has a positive attitude and often escapes into story telling. Some of those stories are hilarious. He also stumbles onto a crime in progress. His adventures with the criminals and police are so much fun. Great book!

[Betty · Rating 4 out of 5]

loveable homeless guy

Several laugh out loud parts. Very witty. I am looking forward to more books featuring Pete the cop to see how he “helps” his peers.

[William · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable read.

Good character development. Main character is a hoot. Plot could use some work. Looking forward to reading more from Mr. Lewin.

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

[Mark Fulton · Rating 1 out of 5]

how did this ever find a publisher?

Humorless, poorly written and absolutely no conclusion or ending. It’s not the worst since I finished it. . . . But wish I hadn’t.

[Ralph · Rating 4 out of 5]

Storytelling is about story, but it's also about telling, and in Michael Z Lewin's Underdog the story is in the telling. Diminutive and enterprising transient Jan Moro (or Clarence Starch Jr, as he is sometimes called) is the teller of this tale, and while he's telling the story of his journey along the underbelly of Indianapolis he's forever telling other stories -- stories of things that happened to him, that happened to his friends, to his enemies, to guys in jails, to guys he met in bars, to guys who met other guys in bars or jail. Jan Moro is a grand repository of shaggy dog stories and anecdotes so weird they just have to be true. As Jan puts it: "I like it when people tell me stories. Sometimes it seems that's just about all there is." What starts out as a chance encounter with underworld lowlife Billy Cigar in a bar where he bought a round or drinks (and, of course, told a story) -- where Jan gets the idea to interest the well-heeled Billy in investing in self-deodorizing clothes and smokers' hoods -- eventually blossoms into a comic tragedy of epic proportions. Very entertaining, very funny and very engaging story where no one is what they seem to be, and Jan is there the whole way to tell you about it, except when he happens to drift off into the mists of memory. Can you trust Jan Moro as a narrator? Sure. Well, probably. I'm pretty sure everything Jan tells us is true...whether it happened or not.

"I never like to tell an untrue story to somebody, but there are times it's for the best." --Jan Moro

[Steve Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVED this.

He’s described as an under appreciated writer. That’s a shame, because if this is indicative of Lewin’s work, he deserves better.

Set in Indianapolis, Indiana, Lewin captures a regional dialect in the homeless social misfit, Jan Moro. Moro is a contradiction. He’s a liar and petty criminal, yet is fiercely loyal to friends who have done him a good turn. He’s dumber than a sign post, but has a certain street savvy a flash memory that can recall a driver’s license or phone number instantly after brief exposure. He’s naive and yet wise.

This would make such a good movie!

I’ll have to check out Lewin’s other works.

[Jack · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I could give this book six starts I would.

The author is little known, but I believe him to be one of the great writers in this genre and that Underdog is his finest work.

Jan Moro, his protagonist, is unlike any other you will encounter in crime fiction. Lewin has always written wonderful, well-rounded characters, but, in this book, he goes a step further and creates a book of great subtleness and strength. I won't provide any spoilers, but if you come across a copy of this, read it. I would be very surprised if you were disappointed.

[Ann Marshall Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actually, it's a pretty good story. I never thought about not finishing it (which happens fairly often). My main issue was that there was a fair amount of swearing in it, plus the "n-Word" was used several times in the context of a joke the bad guy was telling.