Never so many
The world has never had so many books and authors. Past and
present, they are all available through web browsing. Yet how often does this
find a new favourite?
My local public library is one means of trying unknown
writers. Another is sampling online. Also, thanks to the internet, readers can
obtain the books of good authors from past generations. Some still appeal to
modern readers. Ever heard of Aphra Behn (died 1689)? Charlotte
Lennox (d. 1804), or Harriet Martineau (d. 1876)? Remember Han Suyin, A.E.W. Mason, Leslie Thomas, PG Wodehouse,
Nicholas Monsarrat, Duncan Kyle?
This is why I review books that may not have been published
recently. Also current authors who have escaped the notice of major review
sites.
If you have read the following before, then you found it in
my Darling Newspaper Press blog at
www.booktaste.com - more than a year ago. I just thought it was
worth repeating here now in order to widen the argument. And argument it is,
for not every writer sticks to rules and no reader truly wants them to do so .
. .
A
forbidden list for crime authors
WHAT should authors avoid in
writing a murder mystery?
Interesting question, and one that has changed since the Golden Age of Agatha
Christie and others.
I raise the issue on reading WILD CHAMBER
by Christopher Fowler. One of the characters in this baffling plot defines the
whodunit, then goes on to list what should nowadays be forbidden. I quote:
- “A murder mystery is an intellectual exercise, a game
between reader and writer in which a problem is precisely stated,
elaborately described and surprisingly solved.
- “The traditional rules of fair play demand that the
criminal must be someone we’ve met. There can be no supernatural elements,
no secret passages, no imaginary poisons, no Chinamen, no twins, no
mystical intuitive powers, and the detective himself can’t have done it.
- “To them I would add several further moratoria: no more
alcoholic policemen with dead wives, no autistic idiot-savant crime scene
specialists, no oppressed female detectives derided by sexist colleagues,
no overweight computer nerds in dimly lit rooms, no erudite killers
arranging corpses in tableaux reminiscent of medieval paintings, no
renegade detectives sharing a psychic bond with the killer, no cryptic
messages hidden in museums by victims, no opera-loving loners who solve
crimes because without them their lives would have no meaning, and
absolutely no more reinventions of Sherlock Bloody Holmes.”
Strictly
followed, this no-no list would eliminate most of the whodunits I have read. It
is rare indeed for a reader to discover total originality in crime fiction.
Which is why the rare authors who achieve it are global favourites.
Happy reading! from Cathy.
