tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7291823984059320518.post2241822881716515474..comments2024-03-18T23:16:11.140+00:00Comments on 'Do You Write Under Your Own Name?': Top Ten Favourite Books About Crime FictionMartin Edwardshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16082485795280777670noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7291823984059320518.post-39291993243082426382014-12-14T15:55:21.267+00:002014-12-14T15:55:21.267+00:00George, Ted, thanks. Yes, there's some very us...George, Ted, thanks. Yes, there's some very useful info in Borgeau's book. Martin Edwardshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16082485795280777670noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7291823984059320518.post-37375809125170406352014-12-14T05:17:27.988+00:002014-12-14T05:17:27.988+00:00One book that I have always relied on to discover ...One book that I have always relied on to discover new mystery books has been <b> The Mystery Lover's Companion</b> (1986) by Art Bourgeau.Tednoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7291823984059320518.post-65638862206087197532014-12-12T17:37:34.075+00:002014-12-12T17:37:34.075+00:00I agree with your ranking of BLOODY MURDER. Over ...I agree with your ranking of BLOODY MURDER. Over the years, that has been my "go-to" book on the Golden Age. The other nine titles are on my shelves, too. Very perceptive selections!Georgehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04546161337366365635noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7291823984059320518.post-69271706098488775262014-12-12T16:43:36.800+00:002014-12-12T16:43:36.800+00:00Hi Richard. Good question, and although many of my...Hi Richard. Good question, and although many of my favourites tend to have a narrative thread of some kind, I suppose my real answer is that 10 is just not enough. I refer to Hubin very regularly, I must say. Martin Edwardshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16082485795280777670noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7291823984059320518.post-56395178128972690232014-12-12T16:41:53.702+00:002014-12-12T16:41:53.702+00:00Doug, because I lived a short drive from his house...Doug, because I lived a short drive from his house, I used to enjoy going there for a chat and a browse. I always came away with something. Martin Edwardshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16082485795280777670noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7291823984059320518.post-45475095533060768552014-12-12T16:33:09.599+00:002014-12-12T16:33:09.599+00:00Excellent post, Martin. I assume Huben isn't h...Excellent post, Martin. I assume Huben isn't here because it's a straight "look it up" reference as opposed to a book about mystery/crime?Rick Robinsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07978136287154214297noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7291823984059320518.post-34739622974119645282014-12-12T15:51:03.477+00:002014-12-12T15:51:03.477+00:00And Dick had the most wonderful book catalogues, o...And Dick had the most wonderful book catalogues, often daring you to buy a book because (a) it was awful or (b) the condition was horrible.Doug Greenenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7291823984059320518.post-51371071115836536262014-12-12T14:29:31.176+00:002014-12-12T14:29:31.176+00:00Geoff, that's a really good one, I agree, and ...Geoff, that's a really good one, I agree, and written in Dick's idiosyncratic and very intelligent and entertaining style. He is much missed.Martin Edwardshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16082485795280777670noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7291823984059320518.post-75688998835631819812014-12-12T14:09:01.019+00:002014-12-12T14:09:01.019+00:00Might I suggest R.F. Stewart's excellent ,... ...Might I suggest R.F. Stewart's excellent ,... And Always a Detective , a look at the development of the crime and detective story laced with Dick's dry humour. The title come from the closing line of a poem, "How to Make a Novel", published in 1864. ... And Always a Detective was first published in 1980 but is still in print, I think, from The Battered Silicon Dispatch Box.Geoff Bradleynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7291823984059320518.post-87681380228240622672014-12-11T18:51:48.968+00:002014-12-11T18:51:48.968+00:00Thanks, Mark. The St James Guide and n particular ...Thanks, Mark. The St James Guide and n particular the Oxford Companion are among my great favourites of those tow which I've contributed. And there is merit in all the others. The Crispin bio is full of interest, and I like both Murder Ink and Murderess Ink, which have lots of quirky trivia and some fine essays (Ed Hoch on stories about codes is one I recall, for instance.)Martin Edwardshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16082485795280777670noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7291823984059320518.post-60800490260897296072014-12-11T18:51:16.604+00:002014-12-11T18:51:16.604+00:00I have number five in my collection. I've alwa...I have number five in my collection. I've always found the mind of the brilliant AC fascinating. I like the premise of #2 as well. Thanks for the list.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12160669603997465454noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7291823984059320518.post-63952541387898277132014-12-11T18:39:00.336+00:002014-12-11T18:39:00.336+00:00I would second all of these and would add in my hu...I would second all of these and would add in my humble opinion the following (some do have contributions by Malcolm Edwards)<br /><br /><b>Biographies</b><br />Bruce Montgomery/Edmund Crispin: A Life in Music and Books by David Whittle<br />The Adventures of Margery Allingham by Julia Jones<br /><br /><b>Dippers (ie. you can dip in and out like Barzun & Taylor - this is my favourite category and I do have a lot of these on my bookshelves)</b><br />St. James Guide to Crime & Mystery Writers (4th Edition) edited by Pederson & Benbow-Pfalzgraf <br />British Crime Writing: An Encyclopedia edited by Barry Forshaw<br />The Oxford Companion to Crime & Mystery Writing edited by Rosemary Herbert<br />1001 Midnights: The Aficionado's Guide to Mystery and Detective Fiction by Bill Pronzini and Marcia Muller<br />Crime Scene Britain and Ireland: A Reader's Guide by John Martin<br />Book to Die For edited by John Connolly and Declan Burke<br />Murder Ink: Mystery Reader's Companion by Dilys Winn (okay, this is probably not as academic or nuanced as the rest but it was the first of these I read when I was 12)<br /><br /><b>One-Man Overviews</b><br />Snobbery with Violence by Colin Watson (I disagree with quite a bit of it but it makes me think about what I like and what I don't like)Mark Baileyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00400079419316869779noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7291823984059320518.post-1936544000677955142014-12-11T17:18:47.497+00:002014-12-11T17:18:47.497+00:00It is a good one, John. I came to it much later th...It is a good one, John. I came to it much later than the Keating, but I do like it.Martin Edwardshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16082485795280777670noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7291823984059320518.post-34971041224417646092014-12-11T17:12:08.471+00:002014-12-11T17:12:08.471+00:00I'll confess there is one reference book that ...I'll confess there is one reference book that was basically my primer in educating myself about all things of the Golden Age of detective fiction. It's The Encyclopedia of Mystery and Detection edited by Otto Penzler and Chris Steinbrunner. Though it is a bit too heavy on movies and TV for my tastes and therefore loses vital space that could've been used on some important writers overlooked, it is nonetheless one of the definitive texts on the genre from 1860 - 1976. Added bonus: it's chock full of illustrations from movie stills to author photos, from magazine drawings to dust jackets. Over the years my first copy became so well thumbed and the binding broken in several places I had to buy a replacement copy. I still use it to this day.J F Norrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06473487417479127354noreply@blogger.com