Rating: Summary: What the "R." stand for... Review: What does the "R." in Joe R. Lansdale stand for? I've been reading this phenomenal East Texas writer for almost fifteen years now, and I still don't know. I suppose I could click the mouse a few times and get right back to you with the real answer, the right answer. But where's the fun in that? Isn't it better to imagine than it is to know? Back when I was a kid, when only dead flies were on the web, you didn't have any choice but to imagine. So here goes...After reading Joe R. Lansdale's sixth Hap 'n' Leonard novel, "Captains Outrageous," I'd guess the R. might stand for refreshingly-readable (sounds like something made by the Keebler elves). Then again, it could just as easily stand for rip-roarin'ly-raunchy or rhapsodically-R-rated. What I'm getting at is that reading a Joe R. Lansdale novel is like going river-rafting through the rapids or roller-skating on the roof. You're in for a wild ride whenever you pick up a Lansdale book, so you better make sure your seatbelt is good and fastened. "Captains Outrageous" is maybe the wildest-plotted yet of the six novels comprising Lansdale's East Texas series starring Hap Collins and Leonard Pine. Hap and Leonard are two well-meaning ne'er-do-wells living in the small East Texas town of LaBorde. Hap is white and straight, Leonard black and gay, but they're the fastest of friends-brothers without the burden of family. And yet, for some reason, whenever they get together, trouble is never far behind. This time out, Hap seems to have some good luck shine on him for once. While leaving his job as a security guard at a chicken plant one night, the martial-arts-savvy Hap successfully interrupts a rape/murder-in-progress. The would-be victim's father is well-to-do and insists on Hap accepting a ... reward for his chivalry. With some money in the bank, eager for some time away from the chickens, Hap decides to take a vacation. And who better to ask along than his best friend Leonard? Hap's good luck begins to sour somewhere around the time he and Leonard get on the bad side of their budget cruise ship's buffet bouncer. They soon find themselves stranded somewhere in Mexico with no way to get home. Things get considerably more complicated after they're nearly murdered and then rescued by a machete-wielding fisherman and his bad news femme-fatale daughter. Hap 'n' Leonard then get themselves embroiled in the dealings of a dangerous Mexican mobster who also happens to be a staunch nudist. The wildness of plot and fierceness of humor that have become hallmarks of Lansdale's writing are out in full force in Captains Outrageous. Equally prevalent are the attention to character and richness of voice that keep Lansdale's books a few notches up from being merely entertaining (not that that's the worst of crimes). Lansdale has always reminded me something of Mark Twain. Throw in bits and pieces of an old "Love Boat," some Hemingway à la "Old Man and the Sea," and you have an idea of what to expect from "Captains Outrageous." My only complaint is that the second half of the novel isn't nearly as inventive as the first. There's a restrictive symmetry to the book's revenge plot that makes the story arc more of a parabola than an ascending staircase. Still, "Captains Outrageous" is an immensely entertaining read. It's wildly funny, consistently well written, and deserves to earn Joe R. Lansdale new legions of fans. You don't have to have read any of Lansdale's earlier Hap 'n' Leonard novels to enjoy this one, but you'll definitely want to get caught up afterward. So if you happen to like your books entertaining and well written, you'd be remiss to miss out on this rare and rewarding writer.
Rating: Summary: Hap and Leonard settle down? Review: Yeah right! Another fantastic, can't put down tale from the master, Joe R. Lansdale. Brothers to the end, Hap and Leonard go on a vacation and ponder advancing age, life and love. Being Hap and Leonard you know that mayhem will have to follow. All the favorites are back for this one; Charlie, Hanson, Jim Bob Luke, Brett and even Bob the armadillo, and the mix is explosive, hilarious and so uniquely Lansdale. You gotta read this book!
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