Homeboy

"Homeboy ... is a gritty, ribald, and frenetically lyrical odyssey throught the Strip in San Francisco-- a netherworld of whores, pimps, dealers, and junkies-- to the hell of Coldwater Penitentiary. After a high-priced hooker is killed and one of the world's biggest diamonds is stolen, Joe Speaker, a strip-joint barker and dope addict, stumbles onto the missing jewel, is hunted down and put away for the murder. In prison, he finds that his troubles are just beginning." -- Back cover.