Anthony Newton was a soldier at sixteen; at twenty-six he was a beggar of favours, a patient waiter in outer offices, a more or less meek respondent to questionnaires which bore a remarkable resemblance one to the other.
...
Tony Newton struggled through eight years of odd jobs.
...
And at the end of the eighth year he discussed the situation with himself and soberly elected for brigandage of a safe and more or less unobjectionable variety.
The dictionary defines a brigand as a robber or a bandit, particularly from an outlaw band. But that definition is perhaps too harsh for Tony Newton; he focuses on "the art of gentle robbery." And he succeeds, as he himself modestly admits.
The Brigand is a collection of twelve stories, each an escapade of Tony Newton as he moves from one adventure to another, one gullible rich man to another, escaping a detection here, a marriage to a "plum pudding girl" there, a murder attempt elsewhere, even becoming a successful member of the House of Commons in one delightful episode.
The Brigand is Edgar Wallace at his best - simple storylines, a lovable character with whom you empathise even though you know that he not quite on the straight path, a bit of crime, loads of humour, some deceptively simple philosophising. Among the lesser known one-book-only characters created by Edgar Wallace, Tony Newton would probably be right up there on the top
Genre: Literary Fiction
...
Tony Newton struggled through eight years of odd jobs.
...
And at the end of the eighth year he discussed the situation with himself and soberly elected for brigandage of a safe and more or less unobjectionable variety.
The dictionary defines a brigand as a robber or a bandit, particularly from an outlaw band. But that definition is perhaps too harsh for Tony Newton; he focuses on "the art of gentle robbery." And he succeeds, as he himself modestly admits.
The Brigand is a collection of twelve stories, each an escapade of Tony Newton as he moves from one adventure to another, one gullible rich man to another, escaping a detection here, a marriage to a "plum pudding girl" there, a murder attempt elsewhere, even becoming a successful member of the House of Commons in one delightful episode.
The Brigand is Edgar Wallace at his best - simple storylines, a lovable character with whom you empathise even though you know that he not quite on the straight path, a bit of crime, loads of humour, some deceptively simple philosophising. Among the lesser known one-book-only characters created by Edgar Wallace, Tony Newton would probably be right up there on the top
Genre: Literary Fiction
Used availability for Edgar Wallace's The Brigand