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Mulholland Books presents… THE IRON WILL OF SHOESHINE CATS
It’s New York, 1963, and college student Russell Newhouse has just made the acquaintance of notorious Jewish gangster Shoeshine Cats.
Cats wants a tiny favour. And – for his own reasons – he also wants to educate Russell in the world of crime, cops and the gritty reality of life on the edge.
Russell knows a lot about books, a bit about girls, and nothing at all about the mob.
That’s about to change.
It’s New York, 1963, and college student Russell Newhouse has just made the acquaintance of notorious Jewish gangster Shoeshine Cats.
Cats wants a tiny favour. And – for his own reasons – he also wants to educate Russell in the world of crime, cops and the gritty reality of life on the edge.
Russell knows a lot about books, a bit about girls, and nothing at all about the mob.
That’s about to change.
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Reviews
A vibrant, hilarious addition to the genre of mob tragicomedy....his snappy, concise prose and dialogue is on par with Raymond Chandler.
There are innumerable books about New York gangsters but I can guarantee you'll never have come across anything as wacky, witty and irreverent as Kestin's novel.
Had Kurt Vonnegut written The Godfather, it would have read a lot like this.
Everything a good novel should be and more, THE IRON WILL OF SHOESHINE CATS is by turns hilarious, brutal, irreverent, thought-provoking, vexing and terrific fun.
THE IRON WILL OF SHOESHINE CATS just may be the best book you never read. Think The Godfather on laughing gas, or Catch-22 with guns. It's also as good a novel about life in the 60s as you'll ever pick up. Witty, sexy, thrilling, and all story. You can't put the damn thing down. If you're still one of the blessed who reads for pleasure, get this book, because it's a pleasure to read.
The best book I've read this year is out! Haven't read any good fiction lately? Go out and buy The Iron Will of Shoeshine Cats, and don't blame me when you don't get anything done for two days.
In this smart and surprisingly poignant gangster story, Hesh Kestin peppers the stew with an unusual blend that's part American Graffiti, part Sopranos and part The Chosen.