SCUDDER—IN HIS OWN WORDS.

Matthew Scudder. Ex-cop. Private detective. Alcoholic.

Since 1976, Mystery Writers of America Grand Master Lawrence Block has chronicled the life of Matthew Scudder in 17 extraordinary novels that represent one of the greatest contributions of the past century to the literature of crime. Block has received numerous awards for his Scudder stories, including six Edgar Awards, two Anthony Awards, and no less than 11 Shamus Awards. Scudder has also made it to the silver screen twice, played by Jeff Bridges in 8 Million Ways to Die (1986) and by Liam Neeson in A Walk Among the Tombstones (2014).

But we have never gotten to hear Scudder’s story told in the man’s own words—until now.

The Autobiography of Matthew Scudder takes us back to the very beginning, long before the books began, and gives us our first glimpse of Scudder’s childhood, his family tragedies, his upbringing; and a powerful new perspective on how he first got drawn to police work and how, eventually, painfully, he left it. Even longtime readers who think they know Scudder’s story will be startled by how much they don’t know—and powerfully moved as the aging Scudder reflects on his life from the vantage point of a man drawing ever nearer to the end.

A sobering new installment in the Scudder saga, The Autobiography of Matthew Scudder offers at once a beautiful coda and a fresh beginning, and will remind you just how incomparable a creation Matthew Scudder truly is.