Category: Western Publisher: Solstice Publishing
ISBN-10: B00BJ83O5K
Type: Fiction
Pages: 248
Copyright: Feb 20, 2013
A Western humor parody of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
Clarence Flannery was luckier than most men his age to discover his life’s ambition, particularly in the unpredictable years just following the Civil War. Born with an unmatched skill to play pool, he left his home in Kansas when he turned twenty-six and traveled throughout the Southwestern United States to make his mark as a legendary pool hustler, with every intention of amassing a fortune in the process.
Clarence needed help for both support and protection, and recruited James Skinner as his partner, along with nine other highly-skilled pool players to assist him in his quest.
Wanting to be included in the same sentence as Attila the Hun and Alexander the Great, Clarence changed his name to Hustle Henry, Skinner became the Cue-Ball Kid, and the eleven men would go down in history as The Hole-in-the-Table-Bunch, known far and wide for hustling wannabe pool sharks out of their life savings.
All goes to plan and life has a rosy and profitable outlook, but Henry and his men want more than what pool halls and saloons offer, so they decide to challenge the more affluent clientele on a riverboat.
Initially, the venture proves profitable, but the millionaire tycoon and owner of the fleet of riverboats, takes exception, and intends to bring down the Bunch and thrust Henry and The Kid into a life of destitution.
Taking along the Kid’s girlfriend, Penelope Henderson, the Kid and Henry flee to South America – where there will be a final showdown…
Hustle Henry and the Cue-Ball Kid is a fiction work of Western humor with an interesting and amusing cast of characters.
Excerpt
It was mid-morning on September 30, 1908. A massive cloud of dust swirled through the air as a group of horsemen galloped across the marshlands of Louisiana under the intensity of an unrelenting sun that threatened to scorch the earth. Depending on whose testimony one trusted, there were from five to nine riders, but to a man they believed the group represented the remaining members of the Hole-in-the-Table-Bunch.
An old codger named Clem, last name unknown, his face a mask of leather after decades of exposure under a brutal Southwestern sun, later came forward, claiming to be the only eyewitness.
“Yup, all I saw was a bunch o’ horse’s asses with tails a-waggin’,” he said, “but as sher as I’m standin’ here, it was them.”
The Hole-in-the-Table-Bunch was a gang of pool hustlers journeying through Texas and Louisiana from 1902 to 1908, striking fear in the hearts of billiard players everywhere.
One might wonder what did become of the Bunch.
Nobody knows for sure, except perhaps Clem, and he isn’t talking. Some believe the entire gang is dead, cut down by outlaws, their lifeless bodies scattered along the desolate prairies of Texas and soggy marshlands of Louisiana. Others say a mob that comprised their victims from pool halls, saloons, and hotels hanged them from the highest tree in the Gulf Coast region. There are those swearing the gang fled North America for another country.
Professional Reviews
Hustle Henry and the Cue-Ball Kid
An entertaining read with very good characters!
This story has a lot of humor spread throughout, and it is a very easy read that keeps you turning the pages. If you're looking for a lighthearted book with lots of laughs then I would recommend this one!
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