Gadget Man — Ron Goulart

The Republic of Southern California was in serious trouble. The casually repressive rule of the junta was threatened, not only by the growing band of guerrillas in the south, but also by the sudden, inexplicable outbreak of riots in the Republic's wealthiest suburbs. Then word reached the Social Wing of the Police Corps that the daughter of the guerrillas' leader had information about the cause of the riots, and Sergeant James Xavier Hecker was sent to investigate. Hecker was an unlikely policeman: not only did he lack any overwhelming personal ambition, but he also retained a vestigial faith in the good will of the men and women around him. And his odyssey through the rubble of our consumption-oriented, gadget-filled, anything-for-kicks society-by turns surprising, appalling, and devilishly funny-makes an unusually entertaining and perceptive novel.