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| Plot Summary of The Burglar on the Prowl |
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Morrow, March 2004, 24.95, 320 pp.
ISBN 0060198303
He owns a second hand bookstore in Manhattan and has an antiquarian business on the side but the job he loves best is the one that is against the law. He's a burglar with a heart of gold who doesn't believe in violence and even has a policeman, who knows he breaks the law, as a friend. Over lunch, Marty Gilmartin asks Bernie to rob plastic surgeon Crandall Roundtree Mapes because his girlfriend dumped him for the doctor. Always happy to do a favor for a friend Bernie agrees.
A couple of days before he plans to break into Mape's safe, Bernie has the urge to pull off another burglary but before he is through with the job the resident and her date come home. Bernie hides under the bed while the man is raping the woman who is under the influence of Roofies. The next day, his policeman friend Marty comes to his store and tells him he was spotted on security cameras in the area and a block away, a doorman and two tenants of the building were killed, their safe standing open. There's not enough evidence to hold Bernie and he goes back to his bookstore where a man pays $1300 for a book that is only worth a few dollars. When he runs into the street to give the man his money, a car comes along and kills the man and the driver steals the book. Not long after that Bernie's house is tossed, the thieves obviously looking for something. Bernie, with the help of a few friends decides to find the perpetrator and bring him to justice, hopefully without getting killed.
Harriet Klausner
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Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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"A very intelligent known burglar (Bernie Rhodenbarr) with his lesbian best friend along as a lookout, has been asked by a friend to break into a house to collect a large sum of money known to be in the safe. The plot thickens when while he was canvassing the neighborhood a few days before the big heist was to place he is spotted on cameras as being in the area and that same night 3 people end up burglarized and dead.
The policeman who brings him in has had dealings with him in the past and is convinced he is the only one who could have the skills to do this particular break in. The media coverage showing Bernie's involvement soon have the true killers, who never got what they were looking for, breaking into Bernie's place and keeping watch outside his place of business.
Later, Bernie and the detective work together, going back to the scene of the crime to try to find the true killers and the item everyone is looking for.
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Amy in Wisconsin, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of The Burglar on the Prowl |
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Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Composition of Book
descript. of violence and chases - 10%
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 50%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 30%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 10%
Tone of story
- suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
Time/era of story:
- present (2000-2010)
Kid or adult book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
The crook is....
- Get treasure/money from another criminal
Crime Thriller
Yes
Mostly a criminal POV story
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Male
Profession/status:
- accused criminal
Age:
- 40's-50's
How much violence does he/she use?
- none
- a little
Ethnicity/Race
- White/American
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Strong but gentle sense of humor
- Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
- Very much smarter than other characters
Physique
- very athletic
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- police/lawman
- doctor
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- a moderate amount
Motive of antagonist
- revenge
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- Northeast
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
- moderately detailed references to deaths
How many deaths?
- 3-4
- 5-7
Amount of dialog
- significantly more dialog than descript
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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