Thick as Thieves

Geng’s memoir . . . does much to restore integrity to the genre of the addict memoir as presented in classics by William S. Burroughs, Hunter S. Thompson, and Jerry Stahl.—The New York Times Book Review

Steve Geng—thief, addict, committed member of Manhattan’s criminal semi-elite—was a rhapsody in blue, all on his own. Women had a tendency to crack his head open. His sister? Also unusual: Veronica Geng wrote brilliantly eccentric pieces for The New Yorker, hung with rock stars and Pulitzer Prize winners, threw the occasional typewriter, fled intimacy. They were parallel universes, but when they converged, it was . . . memorable.

Spanning decades of unresolved personal drama and rebellion, Steve Geng’s memoir, Thick as Thieves, is the story of their lives, the bond between them, and all the things they shared. This is a memoir about two siblings who loved each other (sometimes), the thrill of the shoplift, and the power of the written word, which will lift your spirits, kick you in the shins, and help you remember the person who understood you the most. Geng has made a lot of mistakes in his life. Thick as Thieves may just make up for them.

Author Biography

Steve Geng grew up an army brat in Philadelphia with his sister, the late Veronica Geng, who wrote and edited for The New Yorker and died in 1997. He attended high schools in Heidelberg, Germany, and Orleans, France. He has been a thief, a saloon keeper, and an actor, and is an active member of Manhattan’s recovery community. Thick as Thieves is his first book.