Will I love Billy Bathgate?

Few writers inhabit history, distill it, and convey the feeling of an era with the verve or immediacy of E.L. Doctorow.

In Billy Bathgate, he trains his lens on the 1930s and introduces us to Billy Behan, a fatherless Irish-Jewish kid from the Bronx, who has a chance encounter with New York gangster Dutch Schultz and decides “whatever my life was going to be in this world it would have something to do with Mr. Schultz.”

Add a love triangle, a colorful cast of mobsters, murder, blackmail, a special prosecutor, and you have the propulsive plot and rich characters that… show more.

For most of my life, I’ve written about the present. Historical novels usually didn’t move me, especially if they had the whiff of costume drama. Doctorow’s novels were no exception. Ragtime, when I first read it, seemed more about the scenery than the souls of its characters. But Billy Bathgate gripped me immediately. The first chapter imagines the impending death of Dutch Schultz’s henchman “Bo” Weinberg as a tub of cement hardens around his ankles, and the rest of the narrative took me along as swiftly as Bo found his way to the bottom of the East River. The novel… show more.

Billy Bathgate employs a favorite device of E.L. Doctorow: placing a fictional character in the midst of factual ones. Billy goes to work for Dutch Schultz and, in memorable prose, charts the downfall of Dutch and raises the compelling question of whether Billy betrays Dutch. The epic catalogue that ends the novel is worth every reader's attention for its artistry. At times, I find the writing in this novel almost lyrical. If readers are like me, they want the prose to sing. This book is rife with arias.

Trust me; you’ve never read a book like Billy Bathgate. Not only does it have a high-stakes plotline full of peril on every page, but Doctorow’s breathtakingly explosive prose is as volatile and alluring as the characters themselves. Fifteen-year-old Billy Bathgate transcends his street urchin existence in the 1930s Bronx by endearing himself to (and falling in love with the girlfriend of) the outrageously violent and unpredictable Jewish mobster Dutch Schultz. Billy’s genius is far-reaching—juggling, scamming, acting, evading the wrath of police and rival mobsters including Lucky Luciano. Based loosely on true events, this one will supercharge you emotionally… show more.

E.L. Doctorow was one of America’s greatest novelists, and Billy Bathgate is one of his best (of many great books). Doctorow is the writer who inspired me to write historical novels, and he was both a wonderful writer and an amazing storyteller.

Billy is a boy from the mean streets who insinuates himself into the dangerous circle of the gangster Dutch Schultz. Billy eagerly plunges into the crime world of Depression-era New York City, participating in everything from gangland killings to three-day parties in West Side brothels. Dutch’s world includes Tammany Hall politicians, bankers, lawyers, and a lot of bad… show more.