The Vig

Peter Alson is having an early mid-life crisis: hes a 33-year-old Harvard grad who has suddenly run out of prospects. He cant seem to finish that novel; he and his girlfriend Anna have decided to call it quits (again); and worse hes flat broke. So when he meets Michael another Ivy Leaguer whos making a killing as a bookie he does what any enterprising guy would do: he enters a life of crime joining a bookmaking operation headed up by characters like Monkey and Steak Knife where his real education begins. If you combined Basketball Diaries and A Fans Notes with a dash of Damon Runyon the result would be something like this-hilarious and heartbreaking-a book that has rightfully taken its place among the classics of down-and-out literature.