The Big Bad City (87th Precinct Mysteries (Paperback))

Rating:
Summary: A book to be proud of, by an ashamed author
Review: This very effective thriller may rank among the best McBain's. Those of us who know the series could begin noticing the clever devices McBain employs to deliver his punches, but they do not detract from the final pleasure.
Mi point is, however, to stress my discomfort with the matter of McBain's real name. I am dissapointed by what seems to be McBain's refusal to acknowledge his Italian-American origin. Until some twenty years ago, it was generally accepted that the name Evan Hunter was a pen-name taken from the high school and college he attended and that his real birth name is Salvatore Lombino.
More recently, editors began telling the readers that Evan Hunter IS his real name. The fact that his wife's name is Dragica Dimitrijevic-Hunter strongly suggests that Mr. Mc Bain has effectively CHANGED his name. As an person of Italian descent, I feel ashamed of the fact that Mr. McBain seems to be ashamed of his origins.
This rather hollow protest of mine, of course, should not stop any reader from reading this very entertaining book.