An Under-read Mystery Writer
Most of the Ricochet posts about mystery writing have lauded the hard-boiled school - and I have to confess, that's my school and I prefer it. But there is also, of course, the so-called cozy style of mystery writing exemplified by Agatha Christie and her ilk. Police procedural master Ed McBain once said that he wrote crime stories about the police because, if he witnessed a murder, he wouldn't call an old lady who knits! And yet, the cozy mystery has its pleasures too. Recently I discovered that the author of one of the best cozies I ever read - my dear and departed friend Sarah Caudwell - was the aunt of the beautiful actress Olivia Wilde, currently having a career year. Sarah was also the daughter of the woman who was the real Sally Bowles - the singer from Cabaret. Anyway, the Wilde link inspired me to post a memorial to the eccentric and wonderful Sarah on my PJM blog: Olivia Wilde's Aunt Sarah. Those interested in discovering a great cozy writer should take a look.
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Comments:
Feb '11
Re: An Under-read Mystery Writer
I rarely read mysteries or crime stories, but somebody recommended your "True Crime" to me, and I thought it was great! The movie was okay, but changing the race of the protagonist was bizarre and really interfered with a key plot element. Super book, though, which I highly recommend to all.
Jun '10
Re: An Under-read Mystery Writer
I knew there was something wonderful about Mr. Klaven in addition to his basic wonderfulness, and now I know why.
Sarah Caudwell was wonderful: if you can imagine a funny, goofy group of semi-serious English lawyers, you'll love these. There were only four (owing to the author's death). The mysteries are good and the humor is superb. Wonderful British irony and understatement.
Dec '10
Re: An Under-read Mystery Writer
Has anybody read Stephen Dobyns' Charlie Bradshaw mysteries? He definitely is not hard-boiled, he always has to deal with his mother, his ex-wife and his odd-ball friend, but he's not cozy either.
Re: An Under-read Mystery Writer
Caudwell was SPECTACULAR. I actually read her books out loud to my wife after reading them. Entertaining, clever, witty, and laugh-out-loud funny. I think Thus Was Adonis Murdered remains my favorite for Julia Larwood's voice. Also—epistolarly novels in the late 20th century! (A sidelight for a practicing tax attorney, if I recall correctly.)
Her books were enough for me to let her family off the hook for her ancestor’s transgression against my ancestors’. (This is Adm. Sir George Cockburn and behind him you’ll notice Washington burning. If you squint you might see a great-great-etc.-grandparent of mine with a water bucket.)
One of the great regrets I have is having missed her at the Mystery Bookshop in Bethesda, Maryland, years back. Well, hopefully we’ll meet on that yonder shore and I can happily fish her burning pipe out of her purse and say, “Ok, now about Hilary Tamar’s chromosomes…”
I envy your acquaintance, Andrew.
Requiescat in pace.
May '10
Re: An Under-read Mystery Writer
On Crime novels I prefer the later Hercule Poirot's of Christie, where she occasionally let slip her loathing for the little Belgian .
Also Neil Simon's Murder By Death sums the character flaws of all the detectives involved.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u9hr4FTHtqM
Edited on July 20, 2011 at 7:08pmRe: An Under-read Mystery Writer
Sarah was Olivia Wilde's aunt? And Sally Bowles's daughter?! I knew none of this.
Thus Was Adonis Murdered lives right here on my shelf behind me.
And that bit in your PJM post about the Jane Horrocks connection...I love Jane Horrocks.
This is kind of making my head spin.
Re: An Under-read Mystery Writer
...is big fun.
Next on my list in this genre to see is Clue, the movie of the game, which sounds awful but has a cast that includes Michael McKean and the divine Madeline Kahn, either of whom I would stand out in the rain for hours to see in basically anything.
Aug '10
Re: An Under-read Mystery Writer
Thanks for writing the wonderful PJM article. I immediately jumped over to Amazon and ordered a copy -- sadly no Kindle option -- and look forward to the arrival. I am a big fan of the Hardboiled school, but I also enjoy the Cozy genre. I enjoy both "Murder She Wrote" and the "Continental Op." I find that the "Thin Man" movies provide a nice balance of the two genre, and are thus among my favorite crime procedurals.
BTW, I was wondering why you felt it necessary to mention the politics of the various writers.
Re: An Under-read Mystery Writer
Well, because politics is what they wrote about and not to mention it on a conservative culture blog would've seemed disingenuous.
Sarah herself cared more about Homer than, say, Thatcher. But whenever I would voice one of my increasingly right wing opinions, she would bark, "Drew!" in such a manner as to nearly make me somersault backwards out of my chair.