The Mammoth Encyclopedia of Modern Crime Fiction - Softcover

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9780786710065: The Mammoth Encyclopedia of Modern Crime Fiction

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0786710063 ISBN 13: 9780786710065

Publisher: Carroll & Graf, 2002

Never before has there been a comprehensive, inexpensive reference guide and overview to the genre of crime fiction like The Mammoth Encyclopedia of Crime Fiction. Veteran editor Mike Ashley’s historical introduction gives an overview of the crime genre, showing the background and development of crime fiction from the earliest days with Agatha Christie and Raymond Chandler through to the modern exponents of the craft such as Elmore Leonard and Ian Rankin. His A to Z covers five hundred entries on the major writers in the crime fiction field, from Edward S. Aarons to Mark Zubro, from the cult favorites to the best known, including Marjorie Allingham, Patricia Cornwell, Colin Dexter, Jim Thompson, and Minette Walters. The Mammoth Encyclopedia of Crime Fiction packs more information into its author entries than more expensive hardcover reference works. Each entry gives a brief biographical background with highlights for the cross-referenced key works, provides a full bibliography, and notes significant films/series adapted from their works. There are also added bonuses of a crime fiction glossary that defines the genre’s special terms and expressions, such as “hardboiled,” “impossible crime,” and “police procedural” and four appendices covering key characters, key books and magazines, key films and TV series, and awards and award winners, including the Edgar Awards, the Dagger Awards, the Shamus Awards, and other important awards. Crime fiction buffs, mystery booksellers, and anyone interested in crime fiction will find The Mammoth Encyclopedia of Crime Fiction to be an indispensable reference and an unbeatable bargain.

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About the Author:

Mike Ashley is the author and editor of many Mammoth titles including MBO Locked Room Mysteries and MBO Historical Whodunnits. He lives in Chatham, Kent.

From Library Journal:

Compiled for crime buffs by a veteran of numerous Mammoth titles, this hefty A-to-Z guide profiles 500 modern crime-fiction authors and 300 television series and major films in two sections. In his introduction, Ashley defines crime fiction as the breaking and enforcing of law, limits the scope to the post-World War II era, and outlines the development of the genre. The parameters are broadly designated to encompass, among others, legal thrillers, historical mysteries, suspense and noir, fun and games or puzzle mysteries, traditional cozies or mysteries, and the fiction of private investigators, police detectives, and gangsters and villains. Espionage, spy, supernatural, and horror fiction are excluded. Although the work is comprehensive, it is not all-inclusive, as selection is based on popularity and influence as well as originality and creativity. The entries, organized to provide quick, easy access, vary in length from one-half to one or two pages. Each author entry provides a brief, analytic biography, followed by the standard data: name (with cross references to pennames); birth and death dates; nationality; novels; awards, web sites, and bibliographies, if any; similar writers; and final facts or summary statements. For TV series and film entries, concise synopses follow the year of release, country of origin, length in minutes, and producers, directors, writers, and leading actors. This source does not offer the in-depth criticism provided by Frank N. Magill's Critical Survey of Mystery and Detective Fiction or Hans Bertens's and Theo D'haen's Contemporary American Crime Fiction. Nevertheless, it is an inexpensive resource that offers concise, up-to-date ready-reference data and analysis designed for the purpose of readers' advisory. Recommended for literary collections. Marilyn Rosenthal, Nassau Community Coll. Lib., Garden City, NY
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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