Official Review: Cool Man Lewk by Karl Lewkowski

Nonso Samuelson · Post by **Nonso Samuelson** » 27 Nov 2020, 10:21

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Cool Man Lewk" by Karl Lewkowski.]

4 out of 4 stars

Share This Review

Cool Man Lewk by Karl Lewkowski is a memoir about the author's journey from orphan to crimefighter. Karl was born in 1940 and was raised by very young parents: an alcoholic dad and an immature mother. He lost his mother to a tragic accident when he was just six years old, a year after his parents divorced. The accident ushered in a period of instability in Karl's life. He got separated from his siblings and was bumped from place to place until he met and fell in love with Toni, who would become his wife.

After Karl lost his dad and got married in 1957, he welcomed his first child the following year. This marked a turning point in his life. Karl decided to step up and take responsibility for his life, which was the beginning of a very eventful career. He became proficient in many of the things he did, starting as a grocery clerk and ending up as an international private investigator. The author's journey has been nothing short of a whirlwind. Cool Man Lewk will give you a front-row seat into his career and family life. You'll experience the joys, pains, wins, and losses of Karl Lewkowski in these regards. And yes, there's much more to Karl's story, but you'll have to read this book yourself to find out.

This memoir was an inspiring and emotional journey for me. I grew very attached to the author while he recounted his experiences, joys, and pains. He wrote with the utmost sincerity, not hiding or embellishing his shortcomings and the unpleasant parts of his life. One commendable trait about Karl was that he wasn't easily fazed and never gave up. This was evident throughout his career in the way he started as a grocery clerk, held a myriad of other job types, and finally ended up with his own private investigation agency. There are relatively few people who can successfully make that kind of transition across several unrelated jobs.

I couldn't find anything I hated or disliked about this book. The author is a kind-hearted man and was nice to people he came across. Even with his childish delinquencies back when he was a kid, his good-naturedness still found expression in some of his actions. I loved the effort and commitment he put into being a good father, especially since he became one at a very young age. Even when his children started to display signs of moral decadence, he stood by them and nurtured them. This commitment was heartwarming to me, given that Karl never really had a great childhood or experienced the genuine love and protection of a parent. Lewkowski's parenting was the best part of this memoir for me.

Cool Man Lewk was well written; the language, writing style, and grammar were top-notch. The pacing of this memoir also helped me assimilate the events in it quickly. This book was exceptionally well edited by a professional, as it lacked obvious errors. There was also no sexual content, which means that readers of different ages can read this book and be inspired by Karl's story. I rate it 4 out of 4 stars. This is because it was a very interesting and inspiring read and had little to no grammatical issues. I would recommend it to all lovers of memoirs and autobiographies.

******
Cool Man Lewk
View: on Bookshelves

Post by **Nichole Kurns** » 29 Nov 2020, 11:02

Great review. The author’s life seems fascinating. I usually do not read memoirs but this seems interesting. I am curious of his path to being an private investigator.

Unique Ego · Post by **Unique Ego** » 29 Nov 2020, 12:53

I'd love to read more about Lewkowski's transition from troubled kid to responsible man. Sounds like an inspiring story

djr6090 · Post by **djr6090** » 29 Nov 2020, 14:44

I wonder if the author's title, and nickname, is a play on the Paul Newman movie "Cool Hand Luke." Lewkowski is about the right age to pick up that name as a teenager. Great review.

Vannaskivt · Post by **Vannaskivt** » 29 Nov 2020, 20:34

This sounds like a great story of resilience and overcoming obstacles. I'd definitely check this out as I always find it interesting how individuals overcome adversity.