Over the course of a fifty-year career, Donald E. Westlake published nearly one hundred books, including not one but two long-running series, starring the hard-hitting Parker and the hapless John Dortmunder. In the six years since his death, Westlakes reputation has only grown, with fans continuing to marvel at his tightly constructed plots, no-nonsense prose, and keen, even unsettling, insights into human behavior.With The Getaway Car, we get our first glimpse of another side of Westlake the writer: what he did when he wasnt busy making stuff up. And its fascinating. Setting previously published pieces, many little seen, alongside never-before-published material found in Westlakes working files, the book offers a clear picture of the man behind the booksincluding his thoughts on his own work and that of his peers, mentors, and influences. The book opens with revealing (and funny) fragments from an unpublished autobiography, then goes on to offer an extended history of private eye fiction, a conversation among Westlakes numerous pen names, letters to friends and colleagues, interviews, appreciations of fellow writers, and much, much more. Theres even a recipe for Sloth la Dortmunder. Really.Rounded out with a foreword by Westlakes longtime friend Lawrence Block, The Getaway Car is a fitting capstone to a storied career and a wonderful opportunity to revel anew in the voice and sensibility of a master craftsman.
