Rag Man

by Pete Hautman

Book Overview

Acclaimed for his sparkling dialogue, laugh-out-loud funny descriptions, and suspenseful, brilliantly drawn plots, Pete Hautman asks tough questions about the nature of good and evil -- and offers... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0743205596
• ISBN13: 9780743205597
• Release Date: September 2001
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.4" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

a modern morality tale

What happens when you abruptly discover that after years of ordinary labor, acquisition of all the usual attributes and goods of a reasonably calm and settled life, there's a different person inside you? How do you react when you discover the dark side? What do you do when your moral compass breaks? For decades, comfortably married Mack Wray has worked away in the garment business in the Twin Cities. He's good with machines, a hard worker and he gets the job done. Life in Minnesota is pretty much okay. If there aren't a lot of soaring highs, there aren't any disasters either. But then comes Lars Larson, the people person. He persuades Mack to take a flier, to reach for that brass ring. Mack re-mortgages his house, borrows heavily wherever he can, including from his in-laws and quits his steady job. He and Larson are now in business together. They establish a new specialty garment manufacturing company. Mack Wray, the rag man, is in charge of production and Larson, the people person, handles sales. The purchase orders pour in and Larson arranges with Mack's friendly banker to lend money against those purchase orders. Money flows and things are looking great. And then one day, Mack discovers that Larson has disappeared, and he's taken every cent of cash in the company accounts. It gets worse. Mack Wray discovers a whole web of theft, fraud and other assorted chicanery, all part of Larson's history. What do Mack and his wife do as creditors circle? They take a free vacation to Mexico. What Mack discovers in Mexico, about Larson and about himself, will surprise and delight readers. In scene after snappy scene, the author brings us up short with sardonic and trenchant wit, with keen-sighted observation. The plot, well realized and fast-paced, has more than enough twists and reverses to satisfy the most ardent mystery/adventure fan. Hautman has peopled his novel with characters who climb off the page and dance you around the room. They are rich and multi-dimensional and their language is always true. Through the length of this delightful and dark and often explicit novel, Mack Wray discovers dimensions to himself he never realized he possessed. You may not laugh out loud, but you'll experience many a satisfying chuckle.

Maybe credible, perhaps not. Would make a good movie.

The RAG MAN is Mack, partner with Lars in a small garment manufacturing enterprise. Mack keeps the machinery running, while Lars is "the people guy" - the salesman. Lars is also the one who's just absconded to Mexico with the firm's funds and the statuesque blond bookkeeper, Rita. Left to deal with an empty payroll account, unfilled orders and snarling creditors, Mack is like a deer caught in the high beams. To Mack's wife, Paula, he's safe, honest, kind and utterly predictable. As she wistfully muses, why can't he stand up for himself, maybe "scare her a little"? As they say, one should be careful what is wished for.Mack shortly returns from a visit to Mexico a radically changed man. As he aggressively retakes control of his tottering business from the bank, his complete personality about-face alters the lives of those most closely associated with him and the Lars fiasco: Paula, Rita, and the local gumshoe assigned to the criminal investigation of the embezzlement, Detective Pleasant.The principal characters, even the top-heavy Rita, are ones we might meet in real life. (Well, eye-popping bimbos like Rita are regrettably missing from the social circles I inhabit.) Their problems could just as well be ours, and you'd think that would cause the reader to extend sympathy. But, as darker sides surface, maybe not. And is Mack's transformation by serendipitous events in Cancún believable? Perhaps not. (Personally, I didn't think it was.) What I can say is that RAG MAN is an adequately entertaining work of dark humor that explores the repercussions and just desserts of actions taken (or not) without being particularly profound. With the proper casting and screen adaptation, it would make a wonderful, low budget film reminiscent of FARGO or A SIMPLE PLAN.RAG MAN is a short tale that can be finished in a day, or 15 minutes if you're a speed-reader. Thus, if it falls short in your opinion, then little time has been invested. Then again, you may consider it a 5-star morality play.

Revenge with a twist

Hautman usually writes books that combine comedy and larceny. Rag Man is less humorous than his preceding books, but no less entertaining. The fact that the two central characters both have redundant names, Mac Macwray and Lars Larson, tells the reader that not everything that happens should be taken seriously. Mac and Lars were partners in a garment business, hence the title of the book, but when Lars takes off with company funds Mac discovers he was taken by a con artist who set him up from the start. Mac undergoes a major personality changed during the novel, effectively turning into Lars. The plot is laced with sex, murder, blackmail, and other assorted goodies. Rag Man is a quick and entertaining read that doesn't disappoint Hautman fans.

Ragman - A great look at people and what they are capable of

Mack MacWray is a typical guy. He lives in a average house, has an average wife, and an average job. He's notaggressive, goes with the flow. The kind of guy most people don't notice. He works as a "ragman". He's the guy in aclothing factory that keeps the machinery working, the cloth flowing. And in this position for a large manufacturerhemeets Lars Larson. Lars is smooth. Everybody like Lars. He's the people guy. A great salesman.And Lars talks Mack into starting his own company. Together they form Mac-Lar. Mack handling the floor and therunningof the business. Lars, the people guy takes care of sales. And together with a beautiful bookkeeper he handles themoney.And then one morning Lars is gone. And Mack discovers that the money is too. And at this point the story reallybegins.Mack starts to change. And we get to watch as Mack goes from a mild mannered, timid, nice guy to a ruthlessbusinessman.It's a fun thing to watch as Mack starts to surprise himself. And it's scary to see at the same time. As he isjugglingmore and more things in the air, you know eventually something will fall. And you want to see what goes first, hopingitwon't, but knowing it has to. Or does it? How well has Mack learned his new art?This book is engrossing. I was afraid to put it down for fear I would miss something, as if Mack would make a movewithout waiting for me to be there to read it. I try to make good books last, reading a bit at a time. But I couldn'twiththis book. The only reason I stopped was to sleep. And I picked it up as soon as I woke up and finished it. I forgottoeat. This is one of the best books I've read in years. I highly recommend picking up a copy.Jon Jordan

An exceptional tale

Mack MacWray ran the sewing operation of Linkway Sportswear when the firm hired Lars Larson as national sales manager. Gradually, the two men bond and become friends so when Lars decides to open up his own company to compete with Linkway, Mack joins him, forming a partnership, Mac Lar Manufacturing. Mack owns sixty percent and is president. Mack believes everything is going perfect as demand is way ahead of supply and credit is readily available if needed. However, everything abruptly collapses when Lars vanishes, taking all the liquid assets with him. Some time later by either a cosmic thirst for revenge or just a colossal coincidence, Mack meets Lars in Mexico, an unexpected rendezvous that changes the ethical man forever. Pete Hautman has written an exceptional tale centering on the impact of a con artist misjudging his mark. The story line is fast paced with plenty of action and credible characters especially the lead duo though the transformation of Mack from a caring brilliant individual into a cold clone of Lars seems abrupt. Still RAG MAN is a pleasant reading experience.Harriet Klausner