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43+ Works 107 Membros 6 Críticas

About the Author

David Schmid is associate professor of English at the State University of New York at Buffalo

Obras por David Schmid

Nordic Noir 1 exemplar
The Lady Detective 1 exemplar

Associated Works

Serial Killers - Philosophy for Everyone: Being and Killing (2010) — Contribuidor — 27 exemplares

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Membros

Críticas

Once again I didn’t know what to expect from a Great Courses series I picked up on an Audible sale. I can’t resist the idea of getting two courses for one credit when I remember how much I used to pay for a single course on CD. Finding out what each course is like can be akin to opening a wrapped gift as a kid. Sometimes it's an ugly sweater, and other times it's a really cool chemistry set.

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)
 
Assinalado
BarbKBooks | 5 outras críticas | Aug 15, 2022 |
A very thorough look at mystery fiction, from detective to hard-boiled to modern noir. It actually covers a lot of other related genres as well: crime thriller, espionage, true crime, etc. as well as books and stories from different eras, countries, and ethnicities. As a reader, this was a great introduction to a widespread genre that I am not that familiar with. As a writer, I found the analyses fascinating and inspiring. It took a long time to get through the audiobook, but I remained interested in the material all the way to the end. I'm looking forward to reading some of the books mentioned in this lecture series.… (mais)
 
Assinalado
JosephVanBuren | 5 outras críticas | May 17, 2022 |
This was my latest audiobook, which is one of the "Great Courses" series. I often don't review these, because although they are in audiobook format, they are really a series of lectures, rather than a book, per se. However, I'm making an exception here, because mystery and suspense is a popular topic around here, and because this is one of the best "Great Courses" I've ever listened to. Dr. Schmid is an Associate Professor of English at University at Buffalo College of Arts and Sciences. He knows A LOT about the history of the genre and communicates it in an interesting and accessible manner. He obviously loves the genre as well. He has his favorite sub-genres, which don't always coincide with mine, but he is never condescending or dismissive to those that aren't his personal favorites. It's fairly lengthy, with 36 lectures, but each is roughly a half hour, so it's not at all difficult to get through. I've listened to courses that were fascinating topics with deadly dull lecturers, and courses that were unexpectedly interesting just because of the skill of the presenter. This course happily marries an interesting topic and a knowledgeable and personable lecturer.… (mais)
 
Assinalado
tealadytoo | 5 outras críticas | Feb 4, 2022 |
While I enjoyed this course and discovered a few interesting books I didn't know about, at 36 lectures, it is just too long, at least in the way Schmid presents it. There is an immense amount of repetition, such as at least a dozen discussions of The Murders in the Rue Morgue and Poe's other two foundational detective stories. He also reuses other examples over and over in a series of lectures that, while entertaining, are very poorly organized and seem to jump around and back and forth at random. Nevertheless, his judgments are sound and his love for the subject is immense. Despite his altogether peculiar accent, he is a fluid presenter who rarely stumbles over a word. Despite being a fairly recent course, there are not a lot of compelling visuals here. We see the same pictures of Doyle, Christie, and other authors over and over. Sometimes we are treated with stills from the film versions of novels Schmid is discussing. When speaking, Schmid likes to make hand gestures, so to spice things up a bit, the Teaching Company has the words he is speaking often appear at his fingertips as he says them. This is more than a bit hokey. Other times, long quotes are presented on screen in HIGHLY ANNOYING ALL CAPS. It takes Schmid about three times as long to get through them as it will take the viewer to just read them. As I said, though, this is a good survey, and Schmid is clear when expressing his personal opinions. He also quotes effectively from other authors and critics.

Still, the choice of authors may not satisfy everyone. I would have loved to have heard Schmid's opinion on John D. MacDonald's Travis McGee or of the works of Derek Raymond or of Mark Smith's incredible The Death of the Detective, which would have worked well in the last lecture. Take away the repetition, and perhaps there would have been room for all of this and more!
… (mais)
½
 
Assinalado
datrappert | 5 outras críticas | Aug 7, 2018 |

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Associated Authors

Estatísticas

Obras
43
Also by
1
Membros
107
Popularidade
#180,615
Avaliação
4.0
Críticas
6
ISBN
12
Línguas
1

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