Masters of the "Humdrum" Mystery

Masters of the
Author :
Publisher : McFarland
Total Pages : 310
Release :
ISBN-10 : 9780786490899
ISBN-13 : 0786490896
Rating : 4/5 (896 Downloads)

Book Synopsis Masters of the "Humdrum" Mystery by : Curtis Evans

Download or read book Masters of the "Humdrum" Mystery written by Curtis Evans and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2014-01-10 with total page 310 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In 1972, in an attempt to elevate the stature of the "crime novel," influential crime writer and critic Julian Symons cast numerous Golden Age detective fiction writers into literary perdition as "Humdrums," condemning their focus on puzzle plots over stylish writing and explorations of character, setting and theme. This volume explores the works of three prominent British "Humdrums"--Cecil John Charles Street, Freeman Wills Crofts, and Alfred Walter Stewart--revealing their work to be more complex, as puzzles and as social documents, than Symons allowed. By championing the intrinsic merit of these mystery writers, the study demonstrates that reintegrating the "Humdrums" into mystery genre studies provides a fuller understanding of the Golden Age of detective fiction and its aftermath.


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