Review: Misdemeanor Man

As a public defender, he works in a basement office, defending minor offenders of the law. While his co-workers fight their way up the political food chain, he is content to muddle along with misdemeanor cases, which don't tax his energies. This is because Gordy has a Mission. In his spare time, he sings in a Barry Manilow cover band, where he and his group spread the Word of Barry. Most of the rest of his time is occupied in taking care of his prematurely senile father and wondering if he will end up losing his own mind to the same genetic abberation.

As Gordy and his band prepare for their biggest gig yet (rumor has it The Great Man Himself may show), he is given an assignment defend a flasher. No problem on an ordinary day, but somehow, his perp, Harold Dunn, has made some enemies and he refuses to plead guilty; he wants his day in court! This may take a while.

Annoying as this might sound, it gets worse. The prosecuting attorney is Gordy's ex-lover, whose mere presence still makes simple thinking difficult, let alone preparing a proper defense. She has been instructed to put the flasher away for a long time, and she is determined to follow through. However, when of one of the eyewitnesses to the alleged indiscretion is murdered, it looks like Gordy will actually have to do some homework on this one.

This book is one smirk after another. Gordy has a lot of dark bits in his life, yet he has a great way of seeing things (with much help from Mr. Manilow) that make one think, "This guy's alright." I was well into the second chapter before I realized that this was written in the first person, present tense. Suddenly, this bothered me for oh, a paragraph or so. But Schaffer's narrative whips along even in the courtroom and on stage, where it might normally get dull. If there is a second Gordy Seegerman (aka Barry X) book, tell me immediately!

Reprinted with permission. Do Not repost without permission from the author, Kat - RAM - Wisconsin

Book Review: Misdemeanor Man