{"product_id":"the-crime-fiction-handbook-isbn-9780470657041","title":"The Crime Fiction Handbook","description":"\u003ci\u003eThe Crime Fiction Handbook\u003c\/i\u003e presents a comprehensive introduction to the origins, development, and cultural significance of the crime fiction genre, focusing mainly on American British, and Scandinavian texts.  \u003cul\u003e \u003cli\u003eProvides an accessible and well-written introduction to the genre of crime fiction\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003eMoves with ease between a general overview of the genre and useful theoretical approaches\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003eIncludes a close analysis of the key texts in the crime fiction tradition\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003eIdentifies what makes crime fiction of such cultural importance and illuminates the social and political anxieties at its heart.\u003c\/li\u003e \u003cli\u003eShows the similarities and differences between British, American, and Scandinavian crime fiction traditions\u003c\/li\u003e \u003c\/ul\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \u003cp\u003eAcknowledgments vii\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIntroductory Note ix\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ePart 1 Introduction 1\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ePart 2 The Politics, Main Forms, and Key Concerns of Crime Fiction 9\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe Politics of Crime Fiction 11\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe Types of Crime Fiction 27\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eClassical Detective Fiction 27\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eHard-Boiled Detective Fiction 34\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe Police Novel 41\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eTransgressor Narratives 50\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eVision, Supervision, and the City 60\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eCrime and the Body 75\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eGender Matters 85\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eRepresentations of Race 96\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ePart 3 Some Key Works in Crime Fiction 107\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eEdgar Allan Poe: “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” (1841) 109\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eArthur Conan Doyle: The Sign of Four (1890) 116\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAgatha Christie: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (1926) 127\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eDashiell Hammett: The Maltese Falcon (1930) 136\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eRaymond Chandler: The Big Sleep (1939) 143\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eJames M. Cain: Double Indemnity (1936) 151\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003ePatricia Highsmith: The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955) 159\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eChester Himes: Cotton Comes to Harlem (1965) 167\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eMaj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö: The Laughing Policeman (1968) 176\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eJames Ellroy: The Black Dahlia (1987) 187\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThomas Harris: The Silence of the Lambs (1988) 198\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003ePatricia Cornwell: Unnatural Exposure (1997) 208\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIan Rankin: The Naming of the Dead (2006) 218\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eStieg Larsson: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2005) 227\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eEnd Note 241\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eReferences 243\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIndex 253\u003c\/p\u003e  \u003cp\u003e“Summing Up: Recommended.  Upper-division undergraduates through faculty.”  (\u003ci\u003eChoice\u003c\/i\u003e, 1 September 2013)\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e“Messent's readings are always perceptive and his book offers an excellent introduction to a diverse genre.”  (\u003ci\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e, 8 March 2013)\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e“Those interested in the more arcane byways of crime fiction will find this concise but intelligent volume invaluable, with its academic (but accessible) analyses of some of the key texts in the genre. What is perhaps the most valuable aspect of the book is the fact that Peter Messent has managed to unearth new insights into this much written-about subject — no easy task in the 21st century, when a considerable amount of analysis of the field (including, in a modest way, by this writer) is so endemic.”  (\u003ci\u003eCrime Time\u003c\/i\u003e, 27 February 2013) \u003c\/p\u003e \"...at a stroke this volume joins the library of key texts in the field.\" (\u003ci\u003eCrime Time\u003c\/i\u003e, February 2013)\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e \"... a good introduction to a prolific genre.\" (\u003ci\u003eTimes Literary Supplement\u003c\/i\u003e, March 2013)  \u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ePeter Messent\u003c\/b\u003e is Emeritus Professor of Modern American Literature at the University of Nottingham. A specialist on Mark Twain, Ernest Hemingway, and crime fiction, he has published numerous books and articles on a variety of nineteenth- and twentieth-century American writers. His most recent publication is the prize-winning book \u003ci\u003eMark Twain and Male Friendship\u003c\/i\u003e (2009).   \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"An outstanding piece of work that deserves a wide audience. Peter Messent's The Crime Fiction Handbook is essential reading. I can imagine no better introduction to the genre.\"\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eDavid Schmid, University at Buffalo\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e  \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWith its compelling blend of murder, mystery, and detection, it should come as no surprise that crime fiction is a hugely popular literary genre. \u003ci\u003eThe Crime Fiction Handbook\u003c\/i\u003e presents a comprehensive introduction to the origins, development, and cultural significance of the crime fiction genre, focusing mainly on its American, British, and Scandinavian forms.  \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe book's first main section presents an overview of the subject, addressing the politics of crime fiction and exploring some of its main variants – classical and hard-boiled detective fiction, the private eye and the police novel, and fictions of transgression. The section concludes with an exploration of three key elements of the genre: the links between vision, supervision, and the urban landscape; representations of the body and the acts of violence done to it; and issues both of race and gender.  \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn-depth readings of fourteen of the most important crime fictions in the Western tradition then follow, beginning with Edgar Allan Poe's \"The Murders in the Rue Morgue\" and proceeding from classic works by Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, Dashiell Hammett, and Raymond Chandler to contemporary writings by James Ellroy, Thomas Harris, Patricia Cornwell, Ian Rankin, and Stieg Larsson.  \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Crime Fiction Handbook\u003c\/i\u003e offers fascinating insights into the appeal of crime fiction while revealing how the genre both entertains and provides a mirror to the most pressing social issues of the day.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Wiley-Blackwell","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47990201090277,"sku":"NP9780470657041","price":20.5,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780470657041.jpg?v=1761786882","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/es\/products\/the-crime-fiction-handbook-isbn-9780470657041","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}