Pagan Babies

By Elmore Leonard

Book Overview

Pagan Babies is classic crime fiction from the master of suspense, New York Times bestselling author Elmore Leonard. Father Terry Dunn thought he'd seen everything on the mean streets of Detroit, but that was before he went on a little retreat to Rwanda to evade a tax-fraud indictment. Now the whiskey-drinking, Nine Inch Nails T-shirt-wearing padre is back trying to hustle up a score to help the little orphans of Rwanda. But the fund-raising gets complicated when a former tattletale cohort pops up on Terry's tail. And then there's the lovely Debbie Dewey. A freshly sprung ex-con turned stand-up comic, Debbie needs some fast cash, too, to settle an old score. Now they're in together for a bigger payoff than either could finagle alone. After all, it makes sense...unless Father Terry is working a con of his own.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060008776
• ISBN13: 9780060008772
• Release Date: January 2002
• Publisher: Mariner Books
• Length: 368 Pages
• Weight: 0.42 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 4.2" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

Chilling and Very Good to Boot

Genocide is raging as Hutu thugs storm into a church and kill everyone except Father Terry Dunn, who is on the alter saying his first mass. There is nothing he can do about the slaughter, but one day he faces off several of the killers and exacts a chilling penance from them. But who is Terry Duun, really? Is he a priest as he says? He goes home to detroit and runs into Debbie Dewey who is working at a comedy club, doing stand up. Debbie spies and pries until she learns the bizarre truth about Terry. There are plenty of twists and turns in this super story that will open your eyes to a great injustice even as the story pulls you in deeper and deeper.

Another great from the master

There are a lot of great crime fiction writers out there (and even more not-so-great ones). Among the greats, Elmore Leonard stands out as one of the masters. In this book, all of the things that make his books great are here: crisp and realistic dialogue, morally ambiguous characters, plot twists and betrayals. In this case, Father Terry Dunn returns home to Detroit from Rwanda, where he has been a helpless witness to genocide. Meanwhile, Debbie Dewey is just getting out of prison, intent on getting back at her ex-boyfriend who ripped her off (and who she hit with her car, hence the prison sentence). Dunn and Dewey - each with their own agendas - team up with the intention of taking the ex-boyfriend for $250,000. Oh, and then there's the mob, too....This book is fun from start to finish, another indication as to why Leonard has an almost legendary status in the field. As in his famous quote, he leaves out the parts the people skip over, leaving only the great stuff. There are no heroes and few villains in this story and Leonard never hints as to whether the ending will be happy, downbeat or ambiguous (and I won't either). In his books, they can usually go any number of ways.I recommend this book not only for crime fiction fans but fiction fans in general. Leonard's skills transcend the genre and should be a great read for most people.

learn to write dialogue

Well maybe 5 stars was a little strong, but I think more people should know about and appreciate Elmore Leonard.(I guess Danny Devito must like him quite a bit because he's made at least two movies, that I know of, from Leonard's books.)I bought the book mostly because it was on the bargain table at the bookstore, so I was pleasantly surprised at the irreverent humor and snappy, believable dialogue. The story is fun and has some interesting twists throughout the book. My favorite line was when Father Terry dispensed some "penance" to a group of local Hutu guys who smugly thought they were above the law (both moral and earthly ).A few months after I finished Pagan Babies I read "On Writing" by Stephen King and was gratified that he confirmed my opinion of Leonard's writing. King used exerpts from Leonard's work to illustrate written dialogue at it's finest.

Elmore Leonard is still at the top of his genre

Elmore Leonard is a national treasure. Every new novel gives wonderful, realistic characters, that Leonard really makes us care. Please keep them coming.

Another winner from Elmore Leonard

What do a phony priest, an addled hit-man, an ex-con/comedienne, and an aging Mafia don with prostate cancer have in common? To find out, you'll just have to read this latest bit of lunacy from Elmore Leonard. I don't want to give away any of the sometimes convoluted plot, except to say that it kept me reading, and in stitches at some of the dialogue. Where Leonard dreams up these characters is totally beyond my comprehension, but I hope that he keeps doing it for a long, long time.