Will Viharo's Chumpy Walnut: A Runyonesque Fable

Retrospective Magazine contributor Will “the Thrill” Viharo’s very first novel was called Chumpy Walnut, the story of a guy only a foot tall—lost, alone and looking for love and friendship in a wacky, wondrous world of hobos, gangsters, gamblers, gun molls, showgirls, and other colorful characters. It is a story anyone who has ever felt “small” can relate to. Recently, Will self-published this novel, along with several others, including his original Thurber-esque illustrations for the book. Featured here is an exclusive excerpt concerning the two hoboes, Goosey Maloy and Jinx Hoolihan, who discover Chumpy wandering alone in the woods and bring him to the city of Excelsior, “the Big Banana,” to be exploited on the nightclub circuit. First, though, they plan to “auction him off” to the highest bidder, with the help of Booker McBribe, a suspicious agent with his own agenda…