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Damon Runyon
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More than Somewhat Kindle Edition

by Damon Runyon (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 232 ratings
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Alfred Damon Runyon (1880–1946) was an American newspaperman and short story writer best known for his stories celebrating the world of Broadway in New York City that grew out of the Prohibition era. To New Yorkers of his generation, a "Damon Runyon character" evoked a distinctive social type from the Brooklyn or Midtown demi-monde. He spun humorous and sentimental tales of gamblers, hustlers, actors, and gangsters, few of whom go by "square" names, preferring instead colorful monikers such as "Good Time Charley", "Dave the Dude", or "The Seldom Seen Kid".
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  1. Print length
    209 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Reading Essentials
  5. Publication date
    November 27, 2018
  6. File size
    395 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
  10. See all details
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B07KXCPWLR
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Reading Essentials (November 27, 2018)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ November 27, 2018
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 395 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 209 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 232 ratings

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Damon Runyon

Damon Runyon

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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
232 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

M. Hughes
5.0 out of 5 stars Runyon never gets old!
Reviewed in the United States on March 8, 2022
Verified Purchase
I discovered Damon Runyon in 1976 in a short story called “Johnny One-Eye” that had me sobbing and hyperventilating by the end. Runyon could coax the emotion out of a Berber carpet. Whether comedy, excitement, or pathos, he does it all. And the magic is still there in this oddball collection. “Hold ‘em, Yale” almost made me a football fan. I was ready to cry when The Brain finally went home.

The funny thing is how many modern writing rules he breaks—and makes it all work. Adverbs are strewn around like spare tires in a junkyard. Passive voice is rampant. And it diminishes not one iota from the story. This guy is a writer’s writer—of course that is only the opinion of one doll, but this doll is also an editor.
3 people found this helpful
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Kratz
5.0 out of 5 stars Great storytelling
Reviewed in the United States on November 23, 2020
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Damon Runyon tells great stories and is so colloquial in his telling. You get a real feel for his town and the people who reside there. The endings are a surprise. I used to listen to Damon Runyob Theater on Sirius and couldn't get enough of them. They are fun to read. I have read this book to my wife who likes hearing them a lot. The stories take you to the neighborhoods frequented by the characters and you feel at home.
3 people found this helpful
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Kindle Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars A Fun Read
Reviewed in the United States on July 14, 2020
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I really enjoyed these stories very much. You can’t beat Damon Runyon for his crazy characters and his prose is something else - certainly not the Queen’s English.
2 people found this helpful
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Karen F. Deutsch
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Stories
Reviewed in the United States on March 15, 2022
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Refreshingly comedic. A guilty pleasure. Hearkens back to a time when folks believed that all bad guys and gals really had hearts of gold and that the good folks always won out over the bad.
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Sir Thomas
5.0 out of 5 stars Damon Runyon is one of the truly great writers of the 20th Century
Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2015
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Damon Runyon is one of the truly great writers of the 20th Century. This book is a collection of his short stories that feature some of his enduring characters - Harry the Horse, Spanish John and Little Isadore - and many others.
Runyon's writing is unique in style, in story line and in character development. I first started reading his stories more than 40 years ago and they retain their beauty, humour and intrigue to this day and beyond.
4 people found this helpful
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Wahoo
5.0 out of 5 stars One of my favorite authors doesn't disappoint.
Reviewed in the United States on September 12, 2018
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Little known today, but once was the highest paid writer of his day. Over 35 movies made of his stories. Give yourself a favour and join Runyon and walk down Broadway in the 1930's.
3 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars Guys and Dolls
Reviewed in the United States on June 8, 2015
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A really good lighthearted read. Damon Runyon had a unique style of writing in the present tense. Enjoy his amusing tales of the adventures of his oddball denizens of Broadway, his "Guys and Dolls" characters. Meet Hot Horse Herbie, Izzy Cheesecake, Lola Saffola and a host of others.
2 people found this helpful
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William A. Nolan
5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect for Runyon fans.
Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2014
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I love Damon Runyon stories, so this was bound to be great in my opinion. I wish it had included a few more stories, but it was a good collection of some of the best. If you havent read Runyon, get this book and do it.
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Martha McCulloch
5.0 out of 5 stars Who couldn't love these stories?
Reviewed in Canada on August 15, 2013
Verified Purchase
I saw the musical "Guys and Dolls" recently and it reminded me of reading these stories as a teenager. I bought this edition (Kindle) and re-read the stories and enjoyed them immensely. The point of view from the guy who is always just observing, the commentary on the people and the actions and the humorously convoluted speech patterns are so much fun to read and picture in your mind.
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Dr John the Day Tripper
5.0 out of 5 stars At last - Runyon in Kindle format
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 8, 2012
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I have some old paperback collections of Runyon's short stories, which are falling to bits owing to the shortcomings of 1970s/80s paperback bindings and excessive re-reading, because I absolutely love these stories. So I've been searching in vain for some time to find an e-book edition (it seems to be difficult to find comprehensive paper versions nowadays as well) and was mightily pleased to discover this one. Unlike most e-books, which seem to have been generated using rather poor OCR systems, this one is well formatted with relatively few typos, and just about justifies what is a relatively high price; and if people paying this price encourages the publishers to get their act together and publish the rest of of the short stories soon, I'll be waiting impatiently to get the next collection.

Runyon's Broadway is one of those timeless fantasy worlds, like Blandings Castle or Ankh-Morpork, that I love to revisit as often as I can. Unlike Blandings, but rather like Ankh-Morpork, Broadway is populated with quite a few characters that you'd rather not meet in reality, like Harry the Horse, or Little Isadore, but are overjoyed to hear their activities recounted as seen through the eyes of Runyon's narrator. The tales are also surprisingly moral; while most of the these people wouldn't know the law if they tripped over it, it's salutary to see how often people who do things which are pretty repugnant get their come-uppance (often in quite messy and unpleasant ways).
5 people found this helpful
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scifi reader
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant
Reviewed in Canada on November 8, 2016
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A great insight to humour and times long gone. Surprisingly callus and heartwarming at the same time, the short stories have current appeal.
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Sarah Mackay
5.0 out of 5 stars Stories about guys and dolls
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 16, 2015
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These short stories have stood the test of time. Perfectly crafted, each one provides a satisfying read with an unexpected ending and insight into the human condition. Great to have on Kindle for bus journeys etc.
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lee
4.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful throwback...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 22, 2014
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A touch of by-gone New York - characters called Dutch, Lefty Two-Shoes and One-Eyed Molly. Runyon was rightly a legend - writing top-drawer Hollywood screenplays, colourful news columns and books like this. Along with Clifford Odets, he was the master at observing and bottling the essence of street life back then.
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