cover image Little Brothers of St. Mortimer

Little Brothers of St. Mortimer

John Fergus Ryan. Delta, $10 (184pp) ISBN 978-0-385-30133-6

Hilarity turns rapier sharp in Ryan's ( The Redneck Bride ) bizarre tale of a phony, socks-mongering minister and the serial killer he befriends. Self-ordained ``Brother Edgar,'' a peddler and minor con artist, plunges into chaos when, during lunch in a cafe, his assistant Morales Pittman spots the ``White River Kid,'' who has been big news since he murdered ``those six or eight people.'' The Kid decides that Edgar will chauffeur him and his dumb, sexually driven intended, Apple Lisa Weed, to her folks' home 300 miles away. Since the Kid is armed and clearly insane, Edgar finds it prudent to agree. En route, the band tussles with local toughs near Socrates, Ark. Edgar animates his narrative with asides, including the story of a lawyer disbarred ``for failure to thrive'' and a theory on how some people become addicted to cats. Gradually Brother Edgar becomes increasingly determined to help the Kid reform and make a new life with Apple Lisa, her mother (who is an Elvis impersonator) and father (who runs a business from his front porch and has been waiting since 1954 to make his first sale). (Oct.)