HUNTER, Evan - Every Little Crook & Nanny - (Hardcover in Wrapper)

Book and wrapper in good condition even though it belonged to  library before.  >>>   When I decided to read this book which came out of a box in my friend's garage, little did I realize that I was about to begin one of the most enjoyable, fiercely funny novels that I've read in quite a while.  Author Evan Hunter (AKA Ed McBain) is well-known as a quality writer, but he was also very prolific. No doubt many of his titles have fallen out of print.  I wonder how many treasures like this exist only on the shelves of used book stores these days.   -   A frustrated intellectual kidnaps a boy, not realizing that it is the son of a major crime boss who is overseas on vacation. When the panic stricken nanny asks a low-level hood to help her get the boy back before her boss returns, a series of comic misunderstandings and misguided attempts to profit from the situation ensues, drawing in a number of eccentric characters. Each chapter begins with a black and white photo of the starring character, and at first I thought it was some sort of movie tie-in, but apparently these are just the authors (or his publishers) acquaintances who agreed to pose for him.  -   If you can get your hands on this book, read it. You'll enjoy it.  (Goodreads)