'Homer & Langley'.(Books)(Excerpt)

Byline: E. L. Doctorow

The Collyer Brothers were the world's most famous pack rats. In his forthcoming book, the novelist fashions a treasure from their trash.

Pack rats on a grand scale, the Collyer brothers made news in 1947 when they were found dead by a policeman who broke into their New York house after neighbors smelled a stench coming from it. The corpses were surrounded by more than 100 tons of rubbish they had collected--newspapers, furniture, 14 pianos, even an intact Model T. From these facts--along with a few factual liberties--E. L. Doctorow has fashioned a moving novel of obsession, filial love, and the darker side of the American Century. As described by the younger brother, Homer, the Collyers seem normal--until they bump up against the world. In this excerpt, they begin hostingtea dances, with disastrous results.

Excerpted from the forthcoming novel HOMER & LANGLEY, due out from Random House this September. [c] 2009 by E. L. Doctorow.

The item about us in the "what to do, where to go" section of one of the evening papers was the first sign of trouble: something to the effect of a high-class taxi dance on Fifth Avenue where you could rub shoulders with the upper crust. We didn't know how the item got there. Langley said, These newspaper people are illiterate--how can one rub shoulders with an upper crust?

At the very next dance we had to close the doors with people still clamoring to get in. Those we had to turn away sat down on the stoop and milled about on the sidewalk. They were noisy. Naturally there followed complaints from the residences south of us: a letter of articulate disapproval, hand-delivered by someone's …