Noir Novels/Hard Boiled Fiction

[Lawman]

I saw some recent posts on here regarding literary giants and opuses from our beloved Golden Era. Don't think that, because you have exhausted the oeuvre of Hammett and Chandler, that you are through. Think Cornell Woolrich, James M. Cain, Nathaniel West. The body of noir and hard-boiled fiction is much richer than the available books in print would suggest.

I discovered the following site, and have slowly been working through the list. I was an English major, and never heard of most of these authors and novels. I haven't read one yet that I haven't enjoyed tremendously.

Mark


http://www.miskatonic.org/rara-avis/biblio/checklist.html

 

[jake_fink]

I just read Raoul Whitfield's The Virgin Kills, which isn't on the O'Brien list for some reason, for the first time last month. It was a lot of fun. I've read so much of this stuff that it's nice to be reminded why I loved it in the first place.

It read like a film of the time and I even cast it, perfectly I think, with William Powell as the sports writer Al Conners. Pure escapism.

 

[VivianRegan]

I had a "Summer of Chandler" last year, and love his detailed descriptions of coupes as well as and clothes. I tried The Thin Man, but I hate to admit, it didn't do a thing for me.

So thanks for this link, because I was going to simply re-read all my Chandler... which is a good idea anyway...

 

[Adelaidey]

Ooh, now I have some summer reading ideas!

 

[Lawman]

I had the same experience with the Thin Man. I absolutely adore Chandler's stuff. Sometimes I'll finish a book, like Lady in the Lake, and start back at page 1 immediately. The Thin Man seemed all about drinking all day, apparently without getting intoxicated, and crazy parties where I couldn't tell what the hell was happening.

For those who haven't tried him on for size, Cornell Woolrich is a must. When you read one of his books, it is EXACTLY like being inside the world of an old Fritz Lang movie.

 

[BuddyJ]

Hard Case Crime publishes noir and detective fiction, bringing back lost classics and introducing emerging authors. Couple that with their wonderful cover art and cheap "pulp" prices; you can't go wrong!

 

[MrNewportCustom]

I, too, subscribe to Hard Case Crime. I find that I enjoy the old reprints better than the new stories, but I still enjoy pretty much everything to some degree. I must say, though, that it took me a long, long time to read half of Straight Cut, by Madison Smartt Bell. (I think I mostly kept trying to read it, because the girl on the cover looks a lot like an old girlfriend. LOL)


Lee
___________________

"Love's not only blind, it also has attention deficit disorder." - Kinky Friedman

Hard Case Crime publishes noir and detective fiction, bringing back lost classics and introducing emerging authors. Couple that with their wonderful cover art and cheap "pulp" prices; you can't go wrong!

 

[skyvue]

I'm rereading Andrew Bergman's The Big Kiss-off of 1944. It was written in the 1970s, but takes place, as the title suggests, in the forties. It's set in NYC and is a first-person telling of the adventures of Jack LeVine, described in an Amazon review as "stocky, sweaty, and bald, LeVine is a Jewish private detective who makes a living by being polite. But underneath his smile lies a bulldog." I read a couple of Bergman's three LeVine novels many years ago and in trying to track them down to read again, I found that Amazon has the entire LeVine trilogy (not sure I ever read the third one, so I'm looking forward to that) in Kindle format for just $9.99.

Chandler buffs would probably like Bergman's novels just fine, though he writes with a lighter touch, employing a bit more whimsy than Chandler. LeVine is a wise ass, just like Marlowe, and plenty world-weary and tough. Another Amazon reviewer put it this way:

"This lacks the depth, substituting pith for real feeling. Here the attitude is put on like a shoulder holster. Chandler was writing from his heart, to come to grips with a world that seemed unspeakably cruel to him. Any humor injected was not the point, but a bonus. BK-Oof1944 is foremost comedy, attached to the PI skeleton to give LeVine opportunity to utilize the one-liners that make it so. The result is lots of fun, but nowhere near the classic status of the novels it tries hard to be like. Still, almost-Chandler is better than just about anything else around."

I'd say he's got it about right.

Still, fans of hard-boiled detective fiction can't go wrong, really, for $3.33 per.

 

[Benzadmiral]

. . . I tried The Thin Man, but I hate to admit, it didn't do a thing for me. . . .

I tried Thin Man several times, and could never get through it until after I watched the first of the Powell-Loy films. Then it seemed worth the effort. I had the same problem with Maltese Falcon -- got bored with it four or five times, each time in the same spot. Then, after yet another viewing of the Huston movie, I girded my mental loins and tried again.

This time I got it. Hammett's technique in this one is very subtle: He never shows us what anyone is thinking, not even Spade -- no direct thought quotes at all. Instead everyone's emotional state is displayed through action. Much harder to pull off if you can.

I still prefer Chandler to Hammett -- but DH's short stories about the Continental Op are worth trying.

 

[Two Types]

Agree on the point about Chandler over Hammett - and that the Contintal Op stories are worth reading.

My daughter swears by Ross MacDonald. We found a selection in a Canadian bookshop last year. The cover designs and description on the back cover were enough to sell them to her.

David Goodis has his moments. I haven't read many but was really impressed by 'The Wounded and the Slain' which came out last year.

It is also worth remembering the American books by George Simenon. I find them bleak but fascinating.

 

[Two Types]

I couldn't edit for some reason, but that was supposed to read:

"David Goodis has his moments. I haven't read many but was really impressed by 'The Wounded and the Slain' which was republished in the UK recently."

 

[Heater]

One of my favorites is Joe Gores "Spade & Archer" a prequel to "The Maltese Falcon" it's a great novel, the premise is that Sam Spade was the nameless Continental Op in previous Hammett stories.

 

[Talbot]

I'm rereading Andrew Bergman's The Big Kiss-off of 1944. It was written in the 1970s, but takes place, as the title suggests, in the forties. It's set in NYC and is a first-person telling of the adventures of Jack LeVine, described in an Amazon review as "stocky, sweaty, and bald, LeVine is a Jewish private detective who makes a living by being polite. But underneath his smile lies a bulldog." I read a couple of Bergman's three LeVine novels many years ago and in trying to track them down to read again, I found that Amazon has the entire LeVine trilogy (not sure I ever read the third one, so I'm looking forward to that) in Kindle format for just $9.99.

Chandler buffs would probably like Bergman's novels just fine, though he writes with a lighter touch, employing a bit more whimsy than Chandler. LeVine is a wise ass, just like Marlowe, and plenty world-weary and tough. Another Amazon reviewer put it this way:

"This lacks the depth, substituting pith for real feeling. Here the attitude is put on like a shoulder holster. Chandler was writing from his heart, to come to grips with a world that seemed unspeakably cruel to him. Any humor injected was not the point, but a bonus. BK-Oof1944 is foremost comedy, attached to the PI skeleton to give LeVine opportunity to utilize the one-liners that make it so. The result is lots of fun, but nowhere near the classic status of the novels it tries hard to be like. Still, almost-Chandler is better than just about anything else around."

I'd say he's got it about right.

Still, fans of hard-boiled detective fiction can't go wrong, really, for $3.33 per.

Thanks skyvue! I bought it on your recommendation and I'm thoroughly enjoying it now.

 

[skyvue]

Thanks skyvue! I bought it on your recommendation and I'm thoroughly enjoying it now.

Terrific! I'm glad you're enjoying it. I am, too, this second time around.

 

[Betz]

I am currently reading Chandler's Red Harvest. I am enjoying it tremendously.

Although it was not written during the Golden Era, the prequel to The Maltese Falcon, Spade & Archer by Joe Gores was a wonderful read. I would really recommend it if you like San Francisco.

 

[MillersCrossing]

Hammett wrote Red Harvest.

I am currently reading Chandler's Red Harvest. I am enjoying it tremendously.

Although it was not written during the Golden Era, the prequel to The Maltese Falcon, Spade & Archer by Joe Gores was a wonderful read. I would really recommend it if you like San Francisco.

 

[MillersCrossing]

I love this genre/style of writing, and took a crack at it myself: http://www.amazon.com/MALONE-ebook/...353390269&sr=8-1&keywords=mark+crozier+malone

 

[Talbot]

^^^Just bought it. Reading it now...

 

[ideaguy]

will give it a go also...stumbled upon this thread while looking for hats- of all things; have a library of books still calling to me, and the
noir genre is a favorite-not just the times and settings, but the damn writing is plain old good. After having studied Post-Modern literary
theory and it's critical machinations, sitting back and reading a well-wrought piece of noir is a relief and a pleasure.

 

[MillersCrossing]

Hey thanks! Much appreciated. If you could leave a short review after you're done that would be great.

Mark

^^^Just bought it. Reading it now...