Whodunit? A Guide to Crime, Suspense, & Spy Fiction

Goodreads tells me that I have been reading Whodunit? for nine months. And now I have finally finished it. That makes it sound like it was a chore, but I enjoyed reading it every time I picked it up. It was one of several books I keep around the house and pick up and read when time permits and the mood hits me.

This is a mystery reference book edited by H.R.F. Keating, published in 1982. Most mystery reference books I would not try to read in their entirety, either due to spoilers or because there is too much to read. But this one is perfect for reading, very entertaining, and I am sure I will be sampling from it often. H.R.F. Keating supplies the introduction. There are lovely black and white photos and illustrations throughout.

Keeping in mind that the book was published in 1982, it obviously doesn't include current authors. But for readers who like mysteries from the Golden Age to the present, it is a fount of information for the older, obscure authors. And a view of the early career of authors who are still writing. Although I am always on the lookout for mystery reference books, new or old, it was Sarah at Crimepieces, in this post on two vintage mysteries by Frances Crane, who introduced me to this book.

This book has several sections:

• Crime Fiction and Its Categories
• How I Write My Books (pieces by Stanley Ellin, P. D. James, Desmond Bagley, Dorothy Eden, Patricia Highsmith, Gregory Mcdonald, Lionel Davidson, Len Deighton, Eric Ambler, and H.R.F. Keating)
• Writers and Their Books: A Consumer's Guide
• The People of Crime Fiction

In August, 2013, I had read the first two sections, and I discussed them in this post. In the first section, I especially enjoyed Hillary Waugh's discussion of the American police procedural, Michael Gilbert's take on the British police procedural, and John Gardner's overview of the espionage novel.

The section about Writers and Their Books was authored by: Dorothy B. Hughes, Reginald Hill, Melvyn Barnes and H.R.F. Keating. For each author listed, one to three books are suggested as a good introduction to the author. Some excerpts from that section:

Ferrars, Elizabeth:

British detective novelist, published in the U.S. as E.X. Ferrars. With 50 books behind her, starting in 1940, she is one of the stalwarts of the traditional British-style crime novel.... Her books always give the reader something to think about, as well as a good puzzle to unravel. Her people are notably real. They eat; they choose clothes.

Lathen, Emma:

Pseudonym of mystery-writing team Mary Latsis and Martha Henissart. ... Lathen is inimitable, witty, intelligent, honest, and just an all-round terrific writer. The key man and crime solver of the Lathen books is John Putnam Thatcher, New York banker. He and his story reflect the modes and manners of today's Manhattan and the surrounding suburbs.

Garfield, Brian:

American mystery writer. A prolific writer of Westerns under his own name and under many pseudonyms, Brian Garfield moved into the mystery field to an immediate and equal success. He writes the hard-boiled novel and many of his stories have been filmed. In 1975, Garfield received the Edgar for Best Novel with Hopscotch.

The People of Crime Fiction section covers 90 popular characters and was written by H.R.F. Keating. The illustrations come from a variety of sources: film and televisions stills when the characters have been portrayed in adaptations; illustrations from books and magazines; and some were specially commissioned for the book. That section is very entertaining and contains many interesting facts about the characters and the authors that I had not known.

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Publisher: Van Nostrand Reinhold [1982]
Length: 314 pages
Format: Hardback

Whodunit?: H.R.F. Keating

A few months ago I purchased a used copy of a mystery reference book edited by H.R.F. Keating, published in 1982. The book is titled Whodunit? A Guide to Crime, Suspense, & Spy Fiction. And every since I received my copy in the mail, I have been reading through it slowly. At this point, I have read about a third of the book. Most mystery reference books I would not try to read through, either due to spoilers or because there is too much to read. But this one is perfect for this and I am enjoying it immensely.

H.R.F. Keating supplies the introduction.  There are lovely black and white photos and illustrations throughout.

The first section is a series of essays on "Crime Fiction and Its Categories." There are a couple of sections on the history of crime fiction, followed by discussions of nine sub-genres. The essay about the English detective story is written by Robert Barnard and features Agatha Christie, Margery Allingham, Ngaio Marsh, and Dorothy L. Sayers.
Next is the American detective story; Julian Symon starts with the history of the pulps, then moves on to the "Big Three" -- Dashiell Hammett, Ross Macdonald, Raymond Chandler. Hillary Waugh discusses the American police procedural; Michael Gilbert focuses on the British police procedural.

John Gardner provided a great overview of the espionage novel, covering a lot of ground, including Eric Ambler, Ian Fleming, Len Deighton, John Le Carre, and Charles McCarry. Here is an interesting paragraph on the last two:

While John le Carré remains the British guru of literary espionage fiction, there is no doubt in my mind that another author, the American ex-CIA officer, Charles McCarry, really leads the field in terms of the world league. This is purely a personal viewpoint, obviously not shared by the majority. Strangely, McCarry's books have never had the stratospheric success accorded to le Carré.

He goes on to say that it may have to do with McCarry's "realistic eroticism." At the time, McCarry had written only three novels. While I have no desire to rate McCarry over le Carré, I have read almost all of his books and have his most recent one on the TBR pile. He writes very different and compelling spy fiction.

The second section is short pieces by crime fiction authors on the subject "How I Write My Books." The authors covered include Stanley Ellin (titled "Under Financial Distress"), P. D. James, Desmond Bagley, Dorothy Eden, Patricia Highsmith, Gregory Mcdonald, Lionel Davidson, Len Deighton, Eric Ambler, and H.R.F. Keating.  I was thrilled to read how Deighton writes, in his own words, but all of them were interesting.

This is followed by a section called "Writers and Their Books: A Consumer's Guide." That section consists of brief overviews of various mystery authors, listing a few representative books for each. Per the back cover of my book, it covers more than 500 authors and 1500 recommended books.
A fourth section is called "The People of Crime Fiction." It consists of brief descriptive pieces on crime fiction characters, with illustrations for each. Each is about a half a page long; some get a whole page. The back cover says: "the 90 most popular characters."  I haven't sampled that section at all, but I am looking forward to it. The very last section is a six page essay titled "Why People Read Crime Fiction," written by Philip Graham, a psychiatrist.

I first heard of this book through Sarah at Crimepieces, in this post on a vintage mystery by Frances Crane. As she says, the book is "a mine of information in relation to lesser known authors."

I love mystery reference books of all types, old and new, and this one is especially entertaining and informative.