Gladly the Cross-eyed Bear by Ed McBain

Finished on 4Feb.

See, I'm back to dating my list - and I was so determined to keep current. Sic transit New year's resolutions.

I loved this. For some reason, I have never read Ed McBain. I had him mentally classed with the "hard-boiled" detective thrillers. Actually, I'm not sure what that means. Oh well. I bought it solely because of the title; a book named Gladly the Cross-eyed Bear has to have some potential. It turns out that Gladly is a teddy bear with magic glasses which correct his crossed eyes and is the subject of a patent infringement case. Her name arises from a childish misreading of a line from a hymn - "Gladly his cross I'd bear." Even better.

The main character is Matthew Hope, the somewhat self-deprecating attorney representing one of the contenders in the lawsuit. His associates are an eclectic crew and the setting is somewhere in Florida, southern Florida, I believe. Hope was shot in the previous book (I assume) and is grumpy about concern over his recovery after some time spent in a coma. "You try getting shot sometime, and I'll write you a letter when you refuse to come out of a goddamn coma. --- Then again, people keep telling me I seem a bit crotchety since I woke up."

McBain's language usage is wonderful. Hope and his opposite number are listening to the judge drone on about the nature of the proceedings. "I was thinking that everyone in the world already knew all this, at least insofar as it bore similarities to criminal law. Everyone in the world had watched the Simpson trial for the past twenty-two years, six months, three weeks and twelve days and knew all this procedure stuff even better than I myself did." A little crotchety?

Of course, we do end up with murder and mayhem and such, wouldn't want it otherwise. There are sixteen of his books on the shelf in the hall, but I swear I never have read them - I don't know where they came from. I may never know where they came from, but that "never read them" thing I shall correct shortly.