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A reader expects certain things from a veteran, favorite author. Those of us who
worship at the altar of Elmore Leonard crack open a new Leonard novel expecting an
intricate plot, unforgettable characters, and great dialogue that reads as if it is being
spoken rather than coming off the printed page. At this point in his career --- 36 novels,
a passel of short stories, a number of screenplays --- he could probably phone it in and
still make it read well. But he never phones it in. And just when you think he might run
out of ideas, he finds another corner to turn, another way to twist things around, another
way to make it all wonderfully unpredictable yet perfectly plausible.
Leonard once again reveals the depth and breadth of his talent in PAGAN BABIES. The
narrative begins in Rwanda --- yes, Rwanda --- with Father Terry Dunn, a rather
unconventional priest who says Mass when he feels like it, could drink Johnny Walker Red
with a straw (if he had a straw), listens to reggae music while smoking a spiff, and has a
one-armed housekeeper with whom he makes the beast with two backs. Don't think for a
second that you've walked into a Tom Robbins novel, however. This is Leonard all the way.
Father Dunn is in Rwanda for good reasons, and when he returns to his native Detroit he
has reasons as well.
Father Dunn left the States five years previously due to a tax fraud indictment. When he
returns to Detroit to clear up that little matter, he finds himself pursued by his former
partner in crime in a cigarette smuggling scheme, a partner who rolled over on the
erstwhile padre in order to escape jail time. A lady named Debbie Dewey gets to Father
Dunn first, however. She has just been released from prison after serving three years for
assaulting her chiseling ex-boyfriend with an automobile and she wants the money that he
stole from her, with interest. She and Father Dunn hit it off almost immediately --- they
are definitely kindred spirits --- and they have a way of making their respective
interests both mutual and interesting. But they have a slight problem...how can either of
them entirely trust the other when they know each other so well?
Two things here. First of all, Leonard gets Rwanda down perfectly, right down to the
putrid homegrown beer. Our visit there with Leonard is short but unforgettable. Secondly,
there are ten pages or so in the second fifth of PAGAN BABIES --- almost entirely dialogue
between the good Father and Ms. Dewey --- which may well be ten of the best pages of
writing that I have ever read. And the rest of PAGAN BABIES, before and after, sustains
the quality. Elmore Leonard --- 36 novels, and his latest work is his best. The Neil Young
of literature. Give PAGAN BABIES ten stars out of five. Hell, give it the whole sky. Just
don't miss this one.
--- Reviewed by Joe Hartlaub
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