What's So Funny? (edition 2008)

by Donald E. Westlake

Series: Dortmunder (13)

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Member:	jonhovis
Title:	What's So Funny?
Authors:	Donald E. Westlake
Info:	Grand Central Publishing (2008), Mass Market Paperback, 416 pages
Collections:	Your library
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What's So Funny? by Donald E. Westlake

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▾LibraryThing recommendations

Watch Your Back! by Donald E. Westlake (2005)
Same series: What's the Worst That Could Happen?, Drowned Hopes (Dortmunder)
The Outfit by Richard Stark (1963)
Same series: Backflash, Firebreak (Parker)
The Burglar Who Liked to Quote Kipling by Lawrence Block (1979)
Same series: Burglars Can't Be Choosers, The Burglar in the Closet (Bernie Rhodenbarr)

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Showing 1-5 of 10 (next | show all)

An ex-cop pressures Dortmunder and his crew to steal a gold chess set for his client, a wealthy man from whose grandfather it had been originally stolen. Needless to say, the caper seems impossible, then possibilities open up, success is within their grasp and eludes them. A well worn, but ever well used formula for the humorous caper novels that Westlake excels in.

ritaer | May 20, 2012 |

Amusing occasionally but this one just didn't grab me as much as some of his other Dortmunder stories have done. It seemed like it was just going through the paces rather than trying to be fresh and new. (

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TadAD | Sep 5, 2010 |

Another Dortmunder caper. Successful but not as successful as some. (

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eetzel | Mar 23, 2009 |

I haven't read a dortmunder book in years. I forgot how much fun they are. I plan to go back and pick up the ones I have missed. (

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satchmo77 | Oct 12, 2008 |

I don't like the reader's (William Dufris) interpretation. His women are weak. (

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missmath144 | Aug 31, 2008 |

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Series (with order)

Dortmunder (13)

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New York, New York, USA

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For Larry Kirshbaum - welcome aboard

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When John Dortmunder, relieved, walked out of Pointers and back to the main sales floor of the O.J. Bar & Grill on Amsterdam Avenue a little after ten that Wednesday evening in November, the silence was unbelievable, particularly in contrast with the racket that had been going on when he'd left.

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Amazon.com Product Description (ISBN 0446401153, Mass Market Paperback)

In his classic caper novels, Donald E. Westlake turns the world of crime and criminals upside down. The bad get better, the good slide a bit, and Lord help anyone caught between a thief named John Dortmunder and the current object of his intentions. Now Westlake's seasoned but often scoreless crook must take on an impossible crime, one he doesn't want and doesn't believe in. But a little blackmail goes a long way in... WHAT'S SO FUNNY? All it takes is a few underhanded moves by a tough ex-cop named Eppick to pull Dortmunder into a game he never wanted to play. With no choice, he musters his always-game gang and they set out on a perilous treasure hunt for a long-lost gold and jewel-studded chess set once intended as a birthday gift for the last Romanov czar, which unfortunately reached Russia after that party was over. From the moment Dortmunder reaches for his first pawn, he faces insurmountable odds. The purloined past of this precious set is destined to confound any strategy he finds on the board. Success is not inevitable with John Dortmunder leading the attack, but he's nothing if not persistent, and some gambit or other might just stumble into a winning move.

(retrieved from Amazon Thu, 03 Jan 2013 18:33:35 -0500)

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When ex-cop Eppick presents John Dortmunder with a job that involves stealing a bejewelled, solid gold chess set from an underground vault in a Manhattan bank, he says no thanks. However, Eppick says he has to steal the chess set or go to jail for previous crimes.… (more)

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