Steamy Scooter Libby Novel Becomes Hot Online Item

Libby doesn't even have a day job to keep. Are we in for more sexual novels? ---BBB

Scooter Libby Novel Becomes Hot Online Item
Barnes & NobleBefore Scooter got nabbed in the CIA leak scandal, he wrote some pretty racy stuff in his novel.

NEW YORK (Nov. 8) - A steamy novel by Lewis "Scooter" Libby has become a hot item now that Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff is under indictment.

An inscribed copy of "The Apprentice: A Novel," which Libby wrote in 1996 when he was a relative unknown outside Washington, was on sale on online bookseller Amazon.com on Monday for $2,400. Unsigned hardcover copies were going for $700.

Now out of print, the novel tells the story of an innkeeper apprentice in a bizarre coming-of-age story set in Japan in 1903. It is littered with edgy sexual material and strong language.

"Wow, who would have thought that clean living, family values man Scooter Libby was capable of writing such filth," said one reviewer on Amazon. Another Amazon reviewer noted its "lavish dollops of voyeurism, bestiality, pedophilia and corpse robbery."

Libby was charged last month with perjury in a special prosecutor's probe into how a CIA operative's identity was leaked to journalists.

Libby's writing skills also happened to be displayed in a widely published letter to reporter Judith Miller of The New York Times that showed a flair for literary allusion and ambiguity.

"Out West, where you vacation, the aspens will already be turning. They turn in clusters, because their roots connect them," he wrote to Miller as she sat in jail earlier this year for refusing to reveal Libby's identity as a source.
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Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com

Setsuo is a young apprentice at a remote mountain inn in turn-of-the-century Japan, who falls in love at first sight of the beautiful Yukiko, one of a roving band of actors who have come to stay. Trapped at the inn by a blizzard is a larger group of strange travelers. Emotionally wrought by his feelings for Yukiko, Setsuo cannot see that he is getting involved in political skulduggery as he tries to fathom the increasingly odd behavior of the guests. The finding of a corpse and a mysterious small box keep the reader guessing too.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

Although set in Japan in 1903, Libby's first novel avoids the exoticism and antiquarianism of James Clavell and sets its own tightly dreamlike tone. Setsuo, apprentice innkeeper at an isolated mountain hostel in Northern Japan, finds himself marooned with a dubious cast of travelers during a blizzard. His youthful naivete unfortunately draws him not only to a mysterious young woman with a band of itinerant performers but also to a half-frozen and half-crazed visitor. When this stranger flees back into the storm, Setsuo and another guest separately pursue him, leading to robbery and murder. With rumors of political intrigue enveloping the action and the apprentice in possession of a Macguffin as enigmatic as a haiku image, Libby maintains a sense of mystery and claustrophobia through pared-down prose and minimalist characterization. Setsuo's love interest, for instance, is simply the "girl in the cloak of yellow fur" for much of the novel. Even after he learns her name is Yukiko, her actions, history and motives remain ambiguous to the end. Spare and muted, Libby's debut has distilled his diplomatic experiences in Japan with the U.S. State and Defense Departments into a subtle, if sometimes attenuated, story of innocence and temptation halfway across the world and a century ago. ---Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

When Setsuo, an apprentice innkeeper in turn-of-the-century Japan, follows a bearded man into a blinding blizzard, he sets into motion a convoluted set of events. Robbery, murder, love, politics, mystery, and intrigue are all parts of the deadly game, but what exactly is the game and is Setsuo truly a player or merely the pawn of forces he cannot even comprehend? First novelist Libby skillfully devises an exotic and extreme but plausible story, creating fascinating characters and maintaining dramatic tension while dropping false leads along the way. Despite an unresolved Hollywood ending, this is recommended for general and mystery readers, particularly those interested in Japanese history and culture.?Jim Dwyer, California State Univ. Lib., Chico
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

The New York Times Book Review, Erik Burns...

delicate prose and stirring descriptive passages ... Mr. Libby's storytelling skill neatly mixes.... conspiratorial murmurs with the boy's emotional turmoil.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

First novel set in northernmost Japan in 1903, when war is brewing with Russia. The impending war, however, seems to have little to do with Libby's protagonist, an apprentice innkeeper named Setsuo, usually referred to as ``the youth.'' While the youth's master is gone, a terrible blizzard sets in and a motley crew is snowbound, including the various exotic members of a theatrical troupe. A bearded man and a hunter also prepare to enter the inn, but at the last moment plunge onward in the storm. Their action seems suicidal, and, partly to impress a young woman in the troupe, Yukiku, and partly out of genuine concern, the youth chases after them. He witnesses the bearded man's murder of the hunter, but the bearded man spares the youth and tries to warn him of something. The youth in turn, warming his hands on the dead man's body, takes his purse and discovers a mysterious box. Murders ensue, as well as a quite literally steamy scene as the youth spies upon Yukiku in the inn's hot spring. Though questioned insistently by members of the troupe, the youth stubbornly denies knowledge of the box, thinking he could be linked to the theft of the dead man's purse. The youth is beaten and left for dead, then befriended by a samurai in league with the bearded man. The theatrical troupe are spies, it develops, and Yukiku an enemy seductress. The bearded man is a loyalist who returns with spring to explain that the youth has been a true patriot, shielding his country's war plans. ``Arise. You are reborn,'' the bearded man says. The youth accepts a reward and leaves the inn, his apprenticeship at an end. Mostly atmosphere, but it's a satisfyingly romantic atmosphere, like that of an old, swashbuckling boys' novel dropped down in Japan, with a dash of Yukio Mishima for good measure. -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Midwest Book Review

At a remote mountain inn in the northernmost reaches of Japan, a raging blizzard has brought together wayfarers who share only fear, distrust, and suspicion of another. In the winter of 1903, the country is beset with smallpox and war is brewing between Japan and Russia. Strangers have been seen in the woods surrounding the inn and the small village nearby. In the flickering shadows of the crowded rooms, the apprentice, charged with running the inn during the owner's absence, finds himself strongly attracted to one of the performers lodged there. His involvement with the mysterious travelers plunges him headlong into a snow-clouded arena of violence and passion. Murder, first love, and heart-stopping chases through the snow drive the apprentice deeper into the entangled plottings of his enigmatic guests. The Apprentice is a gripping novel of suspense set against the unique backdrop of Japan's secluded snow country. Lewis Libby is a new talent whose ability to conjure up mood, create interesting charecters, and craft a terrific story line give promise to a very successful career. Highly recommended! --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Book Description

The Apprentice takes place in a remote mountain inn in northernmost Japan, where a raging blizzard has brought together wayfarers who share only fear and suspicion of one another. It is the winter of 1903, the country is beset with smallpox and war is brewing with Russia.

In the flickering shadows of the crowded room, the apprentice, charged with running the inn during the owner's absence, finds himself strongly attracted to one of the performers lodged there. His involvement with the mysterious travelers plunges him headlong into murder, passion and heart-stopping chases through the snow.

About the Author

Lewis Libby is the current Chief-of-Staff and National Security Advisor to Vice President Cheney and Assistant to President Bush. He previously held positions at the U. S. Departments of State and Defense. The Apprentice, originally published by Graywolf in hardcover, is his first novel.