Motherless Brooklyn

In St. Vincent's Home for Boys, Brooklyn, early 1970s, Lionel Essrog, a.k.a. The Human Freakshow, is a victim of Tourette's syndrome which gives him an uncontrollable urge to shout out nonsense, touch every surface within reach, rearrange objects, and obsess on numbers. To Lionel, Frank Minna is a savior. A local tough guy and fixer, Minna shows up to take Lionel and three of his fellow orphans on mysterious errands: They empty a store of stereos as the owner watches: destroy a small amusement park; visit old Italian men. The four grow up to be the Minna Men, a fly-by-night detective agency-cum-limo service, and their days and night revolve around Frank, the prince of Brooklyn, who glides through life on street smarts, attitude, and secret knowledge. Then one dreadful night, Frank is knifed and thrown into a dumpster, and Lionel must become a real detective.As Lionel struggles to find Frank's killer -- without letting his Tourette's get in the way -- he's forced to delve into the complex, shadowy web of relationships, threats, and favors that make up the Brooklyn world he thought he knew so well. No one -- not Frank, not Frank's biLethem, Jonathan is the author of 'Motherless Brooklyn' with ISBN 9780606218498 and ISBN 0606218491.