The Efficiency Expert

by Edgar Rice Burroughs

Jimmy Torrance graduated from college without a hope -- he'd spent his hours at the university learning how to box, how to swim, how the hit a baseball and lead a football team. He set out for Chicago with all the enthusiastic eagerness oif a man who knows in his heart of heart, that he's on the winning team. But Chicago wasn't Ivy-league college football, a there was no team to captain: What Jimmyu found in Chicago was a tough life in a tough place at a miserable wage. He found the decency of folks any ordinary fellow would have branded criminals, and he found the criminality of upstanding citizens who surrounded him. He found a whore with a heart of gold, and a safe-cracker who was also a man a body could rely on. And most important of all, in that freakish, frightful burg, Jimmy found a thing called love. . . .

Genres: Fiction, Classics, Adventure, Mystery, Ebooks, Science Fiction, Drama

212 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1921

About the author

Edgar Rice Burroughs was an American author, best known for his creation of the jungle hero Tarzan and the heroic John Carter, although he produced works in many genres.

Reviews

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Readers who are used to Tarzan and John Carter will be quite surprised by Jimmy Torrance, the hero of Burroughs's The Efficiency Expert. While Jimmy is, naturally, handsome, clever, and athletic all in one, he lives in contemporary America rather than in the jungles of Africa or the arid plains of Mars, and he isn't immediately successful at all he does.

Jimmy, like many other young men, graduates from college and quickly discovers that having been a big man on campus doesn't mean he will necessarily succeed in the business world. In fact, he has more and more difficulty getting along. He's down to his last dollar before his luck starts to change.

Jimmy's luck changes slowly, and he struggles along through several difficult, low-earning jobs, making friends with various members of the criminal element and frequently encountering the same lovely girl along the way, until he finally discovers a notice in the newspaper for an efficiency expert. Armed with charm and bluster, he manages to secure the position and makes some alarming discoveries that eventually lead to a happy ending.

This story is unusual for Burroughs in several ways, most notably the setting but also the characters and the romance (which isn't what you were expecting) and even the writing style. It's a fun little story; I recommend it.

[Charles van Buren · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this Burroughs the only alien & fantastic characters are from Chicago

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This review is from: The Efficiency Expert (Kindle Edition)

This is a fun little book with a completely different setting than those usually associated with Burroughs. No jungle, alien planet or lost world. Just Chicago which is alien enough to some of us. There are a few holes in the plot such as the young man, the most popular on campus, not understanding that you are supposed to use your contacts to get started in the world. He carefully avoided everyone he knew in Chicago, but when his very, public, sensational arrest and trial occurred, none of his old friends seem to have noticed. Burroughs was such a talented writer and the subtle humor so much fun, that I enjoyed the book despite these minor problems. This review is from the free Kindle edition released March 24, 2011.

[Julie Davis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't know Edgar Rice Burroughs could write like this. It's as if P.G. Wodehouse stepped in to write it, at a slightly less hilarious level than usual. It's a story about a young gentleman who recently graduated from college and is trying to make his industrialist father proud of him by earning his own way.

He soon discovers that his college education is good for nothing in the practical world. He bounces through the underworld, in the manufacturing world, and the society world ... along the way repeatedly encountering an attractive young lady who can't decide what to think of him. About halfway through the style takes a turn that is akin to that of Frank L. Packard (The White Moll, The Gray Seal), whose books are favorites of mine.

Completely charming and completely un-Tarzan, un-John Carter of Mars, and un-Mucker. What a find!

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

As hard to believe as it was, ERB managed to take one of his classic adventure stories that normal take place in the wild of the jungle or Mars or Venus and transposed it to Chicago in the thirties. It had all the main characters. The dashing hero, the wonderful heroine, the vicious villain. It also had the impossible dilemmas and all of the clichés that were typical to his adventure novels. Definitely a fun read.

[Manuel Alfonseca · Rating 2 out of 5]

ENGLISH: I thought at first that this would be a very different novel to other yarns by Burroughs, but at the end I found that I was somewhat mistaken.

Jimmy Torrance, the hero, can be considered as another version of Tarzan of the Apes: a strong young man, who knows how to fight, and falls in love with a girl who considers herself far above him in social position, not knowing that he is in fact a rich heir who is trying to forgo his heirdom.

Elizabeth Compton could have been an alter ego of Jane Porter. She even has an intimate friend (Harriet Holden) who also gets interested in the hero. Elizabeth is about to be married to a worthless young man who is trying to swindle her father. In Tarzan's case the worthless young man is trying to swindle his own cousin, Tarzan himself. But at the end, the plot of both novels moves apart, as though Tarzan would finally marry Hazel Strong rather than Jane Porter.

When Jimmy is framed as murderer of his boss, the father of Elizabeth, the plot to frame him is not so different from the plot used by Rokoff to antagonize Tarzan with Count De Coude.

Yes, there are no lions, or black people, or pirates, or Arab slave hunters, or bad Russians, or the lost city of Opar. In other words, it's far less interesting. Perhaps this explains why Tarzan had twenty-odd sequels, while "The Efficiency Expert" had none.

One interesting point: Jimmy Torrance comes from a town called Beatrice, Nebraska. This is the same town that gave birth to Barney Custer, the hero in "The Mad King," Burroughs's version of "The Prisoner of Zenda." Burroughs loved to introduce tie-ins between his different novels and series. In this case the tie-in is very slight. At the other end of the scale, he sent Tarzan of the Apes to Pellucidar in "Tarzan at the Earth's Core."

According to Goodreads, two stars means "It was OK." I think that's a good description of this book.

ESPAÑOL: Al principio pensé que esta iba a ser una novela muy distinta de otras producciones de Burroughs, pero al final descubrí que estaba equivocado.

Jimmy Torrance, el héroe, es una nueva versión de Tarzán de los Monos: un joven fuerte que sabe pelear y se enamora de una chica que se considera muy por encima de él en posición social, sin saber que Jimmy es un rico heredero que está tratando de renunciar a su herencia.

Elizabeth Compton podría haber sido un alter ego de Jane Porter. Incluso tiene una amiga íntima (Harriet Holden), que también se interesa por el héroe. Elizabeth está a punto de casarse con un joven indigno que está tratando de engañar a su padre. En el caso de Tarzán, el joven indigno está tratando de estafar a su propio primo, Tarzán. Pero al final la trama de ambas novelas se separa, como si Tarzán hubiese acabado casándose con Hazel Strong, en vez de con Jane Porter.

Cuando a Jimmy le acusan del asesinato de su jefe, el padre de Elizabeth, la trama utilizada para involucrarlo no se diferencia mucho de la que urde Rokoff para enemistar a Tarzán con el Conde De Coude.

Sí, no hay leones, ni negros, ni piratas, ni árabes cazadores de esclavos, ni rusos malos, ni la ciudad perdida de Opar. En otras palabras, es mucho menos interesante. Quizás esto explica por qué Tarzán tuvo más de veinte secuelas, mientras que The Efficiency Expert no tuvo ninguna.

Un detalle interesante: Jimmy Torrance proviene de una ciudad llamada Beatrice, Nebraska. Esta es la misma localidad donde nació Barney Custer, el héroe de "El Rey Loco", la versión de Burroughs de "El Prisionero de Zenda". A Burroughs le encantaba introducir vínculos entre sus novelas y sus series. En este caso, el vínculo es muy leve. Al otro extremo de la escala, envió a Tarzán de los Monos a Pellucidar en "Tarzán en el Centro de la Tierra".

De acuerdo con Goodreads, dos estrellas significa "este libro está bien para pasar un rato". Me parece la calificación oportuna.

[Carl Alves · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve read Burroughs’s John Carter stories and wasn’t a big fan, so I didn’t think I would like this either, but I was pleasantly surprised. This was a fun novel to read. It was short, fast-paced, and always filled with intrigue. At first, the protagonist seemed like a bit of an idiot, putting out an ad for someone to hire him, and then applying for all these jobs he wasn’t qualified for just because he had a college degree, but as the story progressed, he became more likeable and endearing. He had many positive qualities, including hard work, determination, and perseverance. He also had a strong sense of right and wrong, even though he consorted with people who regularly broke the law.

There were a few interesting twists along the way, especially in regards to Jimmy Torrance’s love interests. I liked how he navigated through life. Even though he had false employment records, which led to his job as an efficiency expert, he had done so many things along the way, that he kind of became an expert on efficiency. This wasn’t the deepest and most thought-provoking novel that I’ve ever read, but it was a fun read that I would recommend.

Carl Alves – author of The Invocation

[Elar · Rating 3 out of 5]

Author tries to show us that university degree does not count in the world where practicality is appreciated. Expectation of young people coming from school are very high and nobody wants to start their life from very bottom. Through mishaps and many different jobs main character of story still gets all - money, girls and respect.

[Christy · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the creator of the Tarzan series, this book has a modern-day hero swinging through the jungles of 1920's Chicago. Jimmy Torrance has just barely graduated from a prestigious university, majoring in football, baseball, and boxing. He thinks he can start out managing a big-time automotive or airplane company, but he finds out he isn’t even qualified to be an office boy. So he bounces from hosiery salesman to waiter to boxer to milkman, all the while trying to break into the business world that he craves. He befriends some important underworld characters, who help him out in surprising ways. Finally he’s hired (fraudulently) as an efficiency expert for a major firm, but when he starts uncovering theft, things get pretty hot. Naturally there’s a murder, and of course they pin it on him. Oh, yes, and three different women play into the story, and since he can’t have them all, two have to be eliminated. The story was written in 1919, the second year of the great flu epidemic, so one way the author gets rid of characters is by having them come down with the flu. This is a convenient exit for one of the women that loves him, and she’s the one we like best, but so it goes in rough and tumble Chicago. This is a great story, and well worth reading over and over again.

[Axslingin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Anyone that's ever gone to college knows that it doesn't necessarily prepare you for real life. Nobody told that to Jimmy Torrance, and he had to find the out the hard way on the streets of Chicago. Well, now I guess we can say he has a well rounded education.

Meet Jimmy Torrance, star athlete, revered at one of the best universities around, and a classic candidate for most likely to succeed. He had everything going for him, and in his benevolence was going to do world a favor by gracing it with his presence. Chicago was the city that hit the jackpot, and Jimmy set out to take over a company and shine just the way he did in college. The problem was that the world was unaware of his greatness and he was going to have to force himself into the limelight. They didn't care what Jimmy thought he could do; they wanted to know what he had actually done, which was nothing in the business world, so instead of starting at the top, he began at the bottom.

You never know who you might meet-at any level, and Jimmy made some friends of dubious distinction who would change his life forever. Sure, the friendships were highly unlikely, but this is the story of a single individual, and in that sense, it was plausible, and if they were plausible, so was attracting hot, rich and single. He did that too.

The story was a page turner-any story that keeps you turning pages is good to me, but even so, there were some defects. Throughout were the memes, cops bad, street criminals are people too, and even the "respectable" crowd has its share of criminals. All those things are true in some cases, but Burroughs treats them as the rule, not the exception. Again, you have to look at this as a story happening to a single individual, and not as an essay on society at large.

The first half of the book was the best half in my opinion; the scratching and clawing for survival, not just for Jimmy, but of those around him was compelling. Climbing the ladder, getting knocked off, and having to do it again almost broke him-almost. In the second half, the issues with the law seemed unrealistic and wrapped up like a 30 minute Perry Mason courtroom drama. Cook County jail is not where you want to be, but Burroughs really didn't address that at all; in fact, it sound more like Mayberry than Chicago, and acknowledging that would have made the second half as gritty-if not moreso than the first half. Instead, it seemed a little rushed, not enough to ruin the story, but it just left me wishing for more.

In its totality, a pretty good story, and as far as I know, quite a departure for Edgar Rice Burroughs. Tarzan this was not. A solid three stars.

[Marc A · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Efficiency Expert is a short novel/long short story authored by Edgar Rice Burroughs. It was published serially in 1921. Burroughs authored mostly fantasy and adventure novels and is best known as the creator of Tarzan, although his John Carter was the subject of a 2012 movie . The Efficiency Expert is a rare exception to his usual output in that it is set in America at the time the story was written.

The novel tells the story of Jimmy Torrance, one of the most popular students in "one of America's oldest and most famous universities." He is the top athlete in the school, but in order to achieve this distinction he has sacrificed study time and his grades have suffered accordingly. He manages to improve his grades enough to not only continue in his athletic endeavors, but also to graduate.

He next heads to Chicago, determined to make good and make his father proud. His efforts are unsuccessful at first, and he finds himself on the fringes of society. He befriends certain shady characters. One of his friends is a safe-cracker and part time pickpocket. When he tries to lift Jimmy's wallet, a cop catches him and tries to arrest him. Jimmy vouches for the pickpocket and denies that he is trying to steal from him. Another friend is a prostitute, whom he treats with kindness and respect. Both the safecracker and the prostitute are grateful to Jimmy and become his faithful allies.

Burroughs is a smooth and fluent writer, and The Efficiency Expert reminds me of an F. Scott Fitzgerald story. Like Fitzgerald, The story takes place in the early 1920's, with a college setting and wealthy characters. Jimmy is an underachieving, directionless college graduate like the typical Fitzgerald protagonist. Where Burroughs differs from Fitzgerald is the heavy involvement of characters from the criminal underworld. And Jimmy differs from the typical Fitzgerald character because he is driven to succeed, and he doesn't feel sorry for himself despite one discouraging failure after another. Even though he is reduced to selling hosiery in a department store, he doesn't become an embittered or depressed. He accepts this as a stepping stone while he awaits a better opportunity. His dubious friends help him achieve success. He also has to rescue his rich acquaintances from the dangerous situations they fall into because of their carelessness.

The Efficiency Expert is a well-written story. Jimmy Torrance is a likeable character with a generous spirit. Burroughs doesn't waste any time, and the story moves quickly through a number of plot twists to its conclusion. If you want a quick, enjoyable, angst-free read, I strongly recommend The Efficiency Expert.

[Larry Piper · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was kind of fun, and not at all like most Burroughs' books, such as the Tarzan or War Lord of Mars series. Nope, just a regular book about more-or-less regular people.

So, Jimmy Torrance, Jr. has just graduated from a fancy college in the East, probably some Ivy League school. It's not clear that he studied much. Rather he spent his time being a sports star, and, likely, partying. Studying was for chumps in those days. After all, those fancy schools had the "gentleman's C" racket going on.

Well, anyway, Jimmy does have some conscience, and decides to make it on his own, rather than go back home to take up a position in his father's company. He wants to prove his mettle. So, off he goes to Chicago. He thinks he'll just waltz into an executive position of some sort, but quickly learns that the people doing the hiring are more impressed with actual experience than with one's past life of having been a sports star.

Eventually, to make ends meet, Jimmy takes up some menial jobs. He works for a time as a waiter at a sketchy bar. He becomes a milkman, delivering quarts to milk to the various residents of Chicago. In each case, he runs into a fancy young lady, Elizabeth Compton, and her best friend Harriet Holden. In each case, Elizabeth is repelled because of her assumption that Jimmy is lower class, but Harriet sees some potential in Jimmy.

Well, that's enough for now. Suffice to say that Jimmy does all right for himself in the end. Buy why not read the book yourself and find out just how that can happen?

Were GoodReads to allow it, this book would garner 3*+, i.e. above average, even if not great.

[Albert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just finished the story. I had seen the title many times because I am a fan of Edgar Rice Burroughs, but had never taken the time to read this one before.

Although the story does not take place in the jungles of Africa nor the desert planet of Mars, it is still a great read. Mr. Burroughs weaves a tale of a man you early on learn to dislike, and then start to think better of, and finally admire.

Without giving away some important parts of the story, the protagonist, Mr. Jimmy Torrance goes through many adventures and misadventures before finding the woman that he loves.

Mr. Burroughs has managed to take characters from all walks of life and put them on display as human beings with a story and needs. He blends their stories into one remarkably coherent story that I, personally, enjoyed from beginning to end. There are enough twists and turns to the story to keep even the most jaded reader interested.

Do not confuse this book with the movie from 1991. The movie is not based in any way on this book.

[Janelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first part felt like a P G Wodehouse-ish comedy about a dude who graduated college and begins his job search with high hopes, only to realize that no one wants him or his degree and he is forced to take a series of menial jobs (actually the story felt very millennial for something set in the 1920s). While it was nothing spectacular, I enjoyed it as a light hearted amusing story. However, the later part of the book feel like it tried to go from light comedy to intense drama, and IMO it fell flat.

[Travis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun, flawed bit of fluff.
Noble, good-hearted knuckle head graduates from college and immediately gets knocked on his butt by the real world.
Shenanigans ensue.

Likable cast, a clever sense of humor, some surprisingly nicely done bits of social commentary.
It is very formulaic, but the good parts keep you reading, even when you can see what's coming, as this is a nice change of pace from ERB and he seems to be having fun.

Ending is a bit rushed, and ERB cops out a little bit.

A nice little time waster and I wouldn't mind seeing more adventures of Jimmy Torrance.

[Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the last Burroughs book I had to read except for one of his juvenile books. I left it to last thinking it wasn't much up my alley. I've always loved ERB's fantasy stuff but this is a straightforward and realistically based story of a young man of quality who is down on his luck but never succumbs to corruption and wins out in the end. I was engrossed throughout. There's certainly plenty of coincidence featured in the plot but I didn't mind it much and even without a lot of action happening, it had narrative drive and kept my attention.

[Douglas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Terrific book!

I downloaded this book only because it was the last possible work of ERB that I hadn’t read at least once with the exception of a romance novel. I was again thrilled to find another gem! Carefully crafted and thoroughly enjoyable! I guess after after I re- read a few more Tarzan episodes I’ll have the courage to read a romance novel but don’t expect a review if I do!

[Dimitrios Dritsas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Διαφορετικό από τα άλλα μυθιστορήματα του συγγραφέα, το παρόν συνιστά κριτική στην αγορά εργασίας, τη διαφθορά και την κρίση αξιών στη σύγχρονη κοινωνία. Η κορύφωση της πλοκής περνά μέσα από ένα αστυνομικό και δικαστικό δράμα, που αναδυκνύει τους προαναφερθέντε προβληματισμούς και δικαιώνει τελικά τον ήρωα.

[Steve Lawrence · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was curious about this book, The Efficiency Expert because of the author, who I had only associated with Tarzan! I had read a few pages and liked the easy style but forgot all about it. Today I restarted and then found it unputdownable. I finished it in one go. Good read.

[Sylvia Elliott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good read!

The beginning was a little slow, this book written a long time ago, but the characters were fleshed out and believable. The story was very similar to movies of the same period, yet still manages to keep you reading. Good read. Recommend.

[Kirk Dobihal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ending a little weak, however - pleasantly surprised at the tale told in comparison of some of the other Burroughs stories.

[Byren Burdess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Normalising treating sex workers like humans? I'm for it. My first Edgar Rice Burroughs novel and it won't be the last.

[Geoffrey Greeley · Rating 5 out of 5]

A romantic and moving story. A bit old fashioned, but we need more of that today.

[LadyCalico · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a cute and fun little novella. It has a certain amount of hokey but less than you might expect from a 1921's reverse Horatio Alger story (this one goes riches to rags) by ERG, but it was an entertaining read. It was too short to allow boring lags amidst the action and romance. The good guys were likeable and the bad guys repulsive. It was just a lovely way to spend an evening.

[Mark Rabideau · Rating 4 out of 5]

A surprisingly interesting and relevant mystery novel, very much off-beat for ERB.

[Ginnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the author of Tarzan of the Apes comes this realistic fiction full of adventure.

Very fun almost coming of age book about a man who just graduated college and wants to make it on his own in Chicago in the 1920's.

ERB's writing is very concise and there are no wasted words. The adventure is fun. People aren't always who they seem to be. The ending for me was a little abrupt and cracked me up at the style of wrapping things up.

I'm glad I finally got around to reading it.

[wally · Rating 4 out of 5]

This looks promising....something about some guy, college, goes to town, finds things lacking, etc etc.

Starts out:

The gymnasium was packed as Jimmy Torrence stepped into the ring for the final event of the evening that was to decide the boxing championship of the university. Drawing to a close were the nearly four years of his college career--profitable years, Jimmy considered them, and certainly successful up to this point. In the beginning of his senior year he had captained the varsity eleven, and in the coming spring he would again sally forth upon the diamond as the star initial sacker of collegedom.

update, complete, 14 MAR 12, 1019 p.m. e.s.t.


Interesting story from Burroughs after reading about Muckers, Tarzan, deputy sheriffs, adventurers...Jimmy Torrrence is your college jock, barely graduates, goes to town. Chicago. Cue the tape. Rod B went to prison today, you hear? His fan base saw him off. This is politics in America.

Anyway, Jimmy has a rough time of it initially. The overall tone of the narrative was a bit hard to read at times, early on, Burroughs I assume, trying for that different tone. I think he dropped it after the 50% mark as the story became progressively easier to read. Usually (often) in Burroughs stories, one must approach them with a humungous willing suspension of disbelief, coincidences abound, major coincidences, and there are some of them here, but nothing like can be found in some of his other stories. I have no problem w/coincidences...anyone (you'd think) who is fascinated w/stories, shouldn't. But again... politics in America, Rod B, flying over the prison wall...did he say he was sorry? He maintains his fan base.

Dostoyevksy wrote: As long as man remains free he searches for someone to worship....a bad paraphrase, and I like how Crews said it: Men to whom God is dead worship one another.

That has no bearing on this case. Heh!

Anyway, there's a bit of mystery about this story, a bit of the detective story to this one, a bit of the whodunit to it. One must hold one's nose at the delay in getting the CPA's report...a report that would likely have avoided a trial...

....what? This is 2012? I thought the good goffnor did his deed in 2008? Justice? Shoot man, I think they fried McVay within a year.


Good story, this, a nice twist from the others from Burroughs that I've read.

[Eileen Dandashi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Audiobook Review:
Not often do I step back into the classics and well I should. They hold the interest of generations through the author's ability and message conveyed. This one was brought to life for me by narrator Paul Woodson.

Jimmy Torrance could have been any one of us. He barely got through college, but realized through comments from his father he hadn’t pleased him and in hindsight he hadn’t pleased himself. With the gumption of “I can do better”, he seeks his first job in Chicago. Preferring that, to an offer his father had for work in the family business.

His lessons are numerous in a city of riches and poverty. The message the author conveys to me is one should never spurn those who have less nor give them a fair shake as you should with all society, whether it be a prostitute or even a pickpocket. And what we currently say, what goes around comes around, is very much in evidence in this lovely, entertaining, coming of age story of a young man trying to find his worth in a world quick to accuse and slander.

If it hadn’t been for my admiration of the quality of productions Paul Woodson does, I would not have encountered any of Mr. Burroughs' works other than the famous Tarzan of the Apes, a fantasy, which I loved. I also found he has written many more books that are now in the public domain. Per chance this is your chance to be introduced to his work, if you aren't already.

We read and listen to so many marvelous authors of our time. However, it is nice to be able to recount the marvels of past authors. Thank you, Paul Woodson, for giving me a few hours with an author who should not be forgotten with your talented narration of a touching and meaningful story.

[Craig · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've been enjoying the works of Edgar Rice Burroughs for the past few months, and I'd have to say that this is my favorite so far. Burroughs' stories tend to be formulaic, exhibiting the same tropes over and over again, but I enjoy them because they're fun. This story breaks the Burroughs formula. This isn't a fantasy; it takes place in the real world. It has a better romance than most of his stories, in a way (Minor spoiler: The main character doesn't end up with the first beautiful woman he sees!). This story doesn't even have a lot of fighting. The story also does two things that are important for me in fiction: it makes the reader feel several emotions, from amusement to suspense to sorrow, and it's pretty well put together.

I have two main complaints, both of which are spoilers. First, a minor spoiler: It doesn't seem fitting to Jimmy's character that he's willing to lie to get his job as an efficiency expert. I wish Burroughs had come up with a different way for him to get that job. Second, a major spoiler (don't read this until you've read the book): I was really sad that Little Eva died. I really wanted Jimmy to get together with her. She was an awesome, lovable character.

Overall, I highly recommend.

[Dale · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written in 1919 and first published in All-Story Weekly magazine in 1921, The Efficiency Expert is a rare non-science fiction book for Edgar Rice Burroughs, the creator of Tarzan and John Carter of Mars. I read it on my kindle but if it were a paper book it is estimated to have been about 130 pages.

The Efficiency Expert features Jimmy Torrance, a talented young college student who is a great athlete and natural leaders and all around great guy to have at a party but does not take his studies seriously. When he is almost tossed out of college during his senior year for having no apparent hope of completing the curriculum in four years, Torrance buckles down and somehow passes.

Having turned over a new leaf, he turns down the opportunity to manage the family factory and decides that he will move to Chicago and make it on his own.

Jimmy's expectation that the world will come knocking at his door because he has a college degree is humorous and a reminder that times have always been tough for those trying to break into business. Jimmy's money quickly dries up and...

Read more at: http://dwdsreviews.blogspot.com/2012/...

[Lilmissmolly · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Efficiency Expert by Edgar Rice Burroughs is a classic set in 1921 Chicago. Although it is not a fantasy like what Burroughs is most known for, the writing is excellent and the dialog between the characters is natural. While listening to this audio, I couldn't help but imagine watching an old Humphrey Bogart movie.

The story centers on a young gentleman, Jimmy Torrance, as he attempts to earn a living after graduating from college, jumping from job to job. Besides being strong and good looking, he is loyal and possesses a good moral compass. For example, Jimmy befriends and helps out a prostitute who wants to escape her current life and earn an honest wage. ,Jimmy also befriends a young upper class debutante, who introduces him to her father and the father ultimately hires him.

Paul Woodson did an excellent job narrating. He has a wonderful voice that differentiates between male and female characters. He was a joy to listen to and really enhanced my enjoyment of this audiobook. I received a copy of this audio in exchange for an honest review.