The Big Whatever

By: Peter Doyle, Luc Sante (Introduction by)

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Paperback | 1 May 2015

At a Glance

Paperback
320 Pages

Age
14+

Grade
9+

Dimensions(cm)
20.3 x 13.3 x 5.6

Paperback

$39.75

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The fourth novel in Peter Doyle's award-winning crime series takes his irresistible hero, Billy Glasheen, into new territory. When it comes to sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll, Billy's always been in the vanguard, but as the swinging 60s turn into the 70s, he's living a quiet life. He has kids now, and he's in debt to the mob, so he's keeping his head down, driving a cab, running some low-level rackets. He may as well have gone straight, it's so boring. Then one day everything changes. He finds a trashy paperback in his cab whose plot seems weirdly familiar. Billy himself seems to be a major character in it. He can't think who could've written it other than Max, his old partner in crime who double-crossed him and left him in the mess he's in. Only Max is dead. He went up in flames, along with lots of cash, after a bank heist. But if Max is alive, Billy has a score to settle. And if he didn't get fried to a crisp, maybe the money didn't either. Billy has to find out, by following clues planted in that strange little book. He soon discovers he's not the only one on Max's trail, and has to deal with enemies old and new in his strangest adventure yet. With its ingenious novel-within-a-novel structure, The Big Whatever is a grab-you-by-the throat crime story, an original take on the early 70s in Australia, and a shrewd reflection on a defining moment in modern Australian life. And in the modern tradition of crime storytelling that includes the novels of Elmore Leonard and Charles Willeford, the films of Quentin Tarantino, and TV series such as Breaking Bad and The Sopranos, The Big Whatever is at once darkly funny and deadly serious.

Industry Reviews

"The Big Whatever can be read as a caper novel or a lament for the '60s and the way a few slimy characters sank the peace and love . . . There's plenty of retro appeal here, harkening back to Newton Thornburg's 1976 cult classic Cutter and Bone." -- Booklist

'Wonderful references to pop culture are dotted throughout, beautifully crafted into the narrative, designed to make readers smile and nod. The sense of humour . . . is razor sharp and desert dry, and about as Australian as you can get in a culture that's got American influence worming its way into everything.' -- Newtown Review of Books (Sydney)

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