David Schmid
Autor(a) de The Secrets of Great Mystery and Suspense Fiction
About the Author
David Schmid is associate professor of English at the State University of New York at Buffalo
Obras por David Schmid
Adapting the Multimedia Mystery 1 exemplar
Nordic Noir 1 exemplar
Violence Waits in the Wings 1 exemplar
Violence Takes Center Stage 1 exemplar
Psychopaths and Mind Hunters 1 exemplar
Police as Antagonist 1 exemplar
Police as Protagonist 1 exemplar
Native American Mysteries 1 exemplar
The European Mystery Tradition 1 exemplar
Japanese and Latin American Mysteries 1 exemplar
Gay and Lesbian Mystery and Suspence 1 exemplar
The Lady Detective 1 exemplar
True Crime in the 20th Century 1 exemplar
Historical Mysteries 1 exemplar
Spies, Thrillers, and Conspiracies 1 exemplar
Female-Centered Mystery and Suspense 1 exemplar
Poetic Justice 1 exemplar
Courtroom Drama 1 exemplar
Precursors to True Crime 1 exemplar
The Private Eye Evolves 1 exemplar
Latino Detectives on the Border 1 exemplar
The Sidekick 1 exemplar
Korruption Durch Bonuszuwendungen : Strafbarkeit der (Media-)Agentur Als Beauftragte Im Sinne Von 299 Abs. 1 StGB (2016) 1 exemplar
Grundlagen Bäckerei, Konditorei, Confiserie 1 exemplar
Mystery Fiction’s Secret Formula 1 exemplar
The Detective is Born 1 exemplar
The Criminal 1 exemplar
Detecting Clues 1 exemplar
The Femme Fatale 1 exemplar
Case Closed ? The Problem with Solutions 1 exemplar
The Locked Room 1 exemplar
The Dime Novel 1 exemplar
Murder in Cozy Places 1 exemplar
Return of the Classic Detective 1 exemplar
The City Tests the Detective 1 exemplar
The Private Eye Opens 1 exemplar
African American Mysteries 1 exemplar
Mysterious Experiments 1 exemplar
Associated Works
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Estatísticas
- Obras
- 43
- Also by
- 1
- Membros
- 107
- Popularidade
- #180,615
- Avaliação
- 4.0
- Críticas
- 6
- ISBN
- 12
- Línguas
- 1
This was the latter. Not enough chemicals to create a major explosion, but enough to keep you entertained for quite a while. I’ve been reading crime novels for most of my life, and it never occurred to me that anyone could build an academic career around studying the history and significance of the genre. As it happens, 36 half-hour lectures barely scratched the surface.
Dr. Schmid begins his survey with Edgar Allan Poe’s 3 mystery stories featuring Auguste Dupin. His lectures frequently return to Poe, along with Doyle, Christie, Chandler and Hammett, as he discusses developments in mystery and suspense since the 1840's. His discussions aren't limited to comparisons of cozies to hard-boiled, or amateur detectives-to PIs-to police. He explores recurring themes, such as the changing nature of the detective character, or of the victim.
There are multiple chapters on the evolution of women's roles in mystery and suspense fiction, from their initial presence as victims and femmes fatale, to their current status as protagonists. Schmid provides brief introductions to crime novelists from around the globe, including Europe, Africa, Latin America and Japan. I was not surprised to find an entire lecture devoted to Nordic Noir, but I was surprised that he completely overlooked Australia, given the many excellent mysteries with a uniquely Australian flavor coming from that continent in recent years.
There are lectures on sub-genres such as African-American crime stories, historical mysteries, courtroom drama and gay and lesbian mystery and suspense. I was interested in his analysis of how spy thrillers and conspiracy novels may reflect the public concerns of the times in which they were written.
On the flip side, I found his discussion of contemporary true crime a bit disappointing. His focus was primarily on how readily the public consumes stories about serial killers or lurid domestic murders, completely overlooking what I think of as "cultural" true crime - books like [b:Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI|29496076|Killers of the Flower Moon The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI|David Grann|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1470699853l/29496076._SY75_.jpg|49782213] or [b:Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland|40163119|Say Nothing A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland|Patrick Radden Keefe|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1537315266l/40163119._SY75_.jpg|62303430], which use a murder as a jumping off point to explore larger social or political issues. Oh well, even with 36 lectures, Schmid can't approach a comprehensive approach to any sub-genre or theme.
Since this is a lecture series, a comment on the narrator is due. Overall, Schmid does a decent job. He speaks with a British accent and his pacing is good. But I found one pronunciation idiosyncrasy annoying - he consistently drops the final G. It's one thing when "annoying" becomes "annoyin", but another when Rudyard's last name turns into "Kiplin". It comes across as some kind of mid-Atlantic affectation.
I'm glad for the accompanying PDF, since it will provide a good reference for the names of authors or books that are new to me. I'd recommend this to crime fiction enthusiasts who understand that it is an overview, not an in depth exploration of any sub-genre or theme. If you find it on sale on Audible, snap it up!… (mais)