Reviews

• 追憶と継承

  ７章からなる、英国ディテクションクラブとそのメンバーを現会長が論じた本。 ミステリに魅せられた少年時代の回想から始まり、次々と流れるように秘密を解き明かしていく著者。セイヤーズの不幸な結婚と子ども、バークリーの不倫、フリーマンの優生学など衝撃的な事実が明かされるが、基本的には黄金時代への愛に満ちた本。 ‘but MURDER goes on forever!’というわけだ。

• Ein tolles Werk mit Nebenwirkungen !

  Dieses Buch ist eine unglaubliche Bereicherung für jeden Leser, der sich für Krimis des Goldenen Zeitalters interessiert, also die Zeit in England zwischen den Weltkriegen. Es ist hoch interessant zu lesen, aber vermittelt eine solche Stofffülle, dass ich es oftmals nach einem oder mehreren Kapiteln ruhen ließ und mich einem anderen Buch - einem Krimi, was sonst - zugewendet habe. Das ging wunderbar und erhöhte die Freude an diesem Buch. Das Buch befasst sich mit den Mitgliedern des Detection Clubs, eine ebenso formlosen wie Illustren Vereinigung der jeweils führenden englischsprachigen Kriminalschriftsteller, zu den zwischenzeitlich auch der Autor selbst zählt. Martin Edwards ist nicht nur selbst ein großartiger Schriftsteller, er ist auch ein ausgewiesene Experte seines Themas und bringt beispielweise die großartige Reihe "British Library Crime Classics" heraus und stellt dort allen Büchern sehr lesenswerte Vorworte voran. Allerdings kann die Lektüre dieses Buches sehr teuer werden, und der Kaufpreis für dieses Buch ist dabei das Allerwenigste. Angeregt durch dieses Buch bin ich ständig zwischen meiner Leseecke und dem Computer unterwegs gewesen, weil es so viele Anregungen zu für mich neuen Autoren und Büchern gab. Da die meisten angesprochenen Bücher bei Amazon erhältlich sind, blieb das natürlich nicht ohne Folgen für Bücherregal, Kindle und Konto. Das Buch reicht aber über die bloße Beschreibung von Büchern und ihren Autoren weit hinaus, da dieses in den Kontext des heraufziehenden 2. Weltkrieges gebracht wird. Es verstärkt sehr die gemischten Gefühle, mit denen man so manche gegenwärtige Entwicklung betrachtet.

• A necessary to better understand the development of crime fiction.

  Since The Golden Age of Murder was published, I was interested on getting a copy of this book, both by the guarantee offered from the author himself as for my recent interest on the detective novels of that era. I also understood it would be an excellent reference book, but I didn’t imagine, that it would also be a very entertaining read. In fact, once I started reading it, I couldn’t put it down. It tells the story of how a group of crime novelists, mostly British, came together to form the Detection Club, shortly after the end of the First World War. A group of novelists who, thanks to their novels, managed to carry detective fiction through paths, previously unknown. A group of brilliant novelists, whose lives were not always easy in the difficult times in which they happened to live. Maybe the origin of the book, as Martin relates to us on his Introduction, can be dated back to the moment in which he was elected, by secret ballot, to join the Detection Club. Subsequently, he was invited to become the Detection Cub’s first Archivist, only to discover shortly after that there were no archives. It is perhaps this absence what explains the reasons that brought him to write this book. In any case it’s a very welcome book and necessary to better understand the development of crime fiction.

• Accessible, entertaining page-turner, written by a man who clearly loves these books!

  It is often said that the “Golden Age of Detective Fiction” took place in between the two World Wars. For my money, such a characterization is far too simplified and gives rise to a narrative made popular by Julian Symons’ "Bloody Murder", which treats Golden Age fiction like some freak of nature which popped up between the two world wars because [insert pet sociological theory here]. I cringe whenever this view of the genre’s history is brought up, all too often by authors eagerly assuring you that their stuff transcends all that silly puzzle nonsense and Asks Really Deep Questions. The truth is, the Golden Age was a time of great variety and experimentation within the genre, and The Detection Club was formed in the late 20s in England. The exclusive club gave authors a chance to socialize, and since membership was attained only by secret ballot, it was also a way to ensure the quality of the genre remained high. Martin Edwards’ "The Golden Age of Murder" looks at the men and women who were members of The Detection Club during the Golden Age. It’s an enormous project, one which might overwhelm a lesser man. The good news is, it’s a great read. This book is a love letter to the classic books and authors. Martin Edwards has clearly read his stuff and knows a lot about it. He examines the members of the Detection Club and looks at their work and how it reflected their desire to innovate. He talks about well-known writers like Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers, but he also extensively discusses the work of such members as Henry Wade and Anthony Berkeley, who are known to a smaller circle of devotees. The book is written with enthusiasm, warmth, and humour. Along the way, Martin Edwards debunks several false narratives about the Golden Age. For instance, he denounces the oft-parroted claim that this was a time dominated by “Crime Queens,” and takes the time to seriously look at neglected writers such as John Rhode, Freeman Wills Crofts, and John Dickson Carr. There are limitations to a project like this. Despite the book’s enormous size, Edwards cannot cover everything. His scope requires the omission of some things and the considerable simplification of others. However, any complaints I have in this area would be largely in the nit-picking territory; Edwards manages to sidestep the pitfalls other genre surveys fall into. I was particularly delighted at all the true-crime scholarship throughout the book. Martin Edwards has done an absolutely brilliant job digging through the true crimes which inspired these writers and some of their plots. There are some familiar cases, such as the Dr. Crippen affair and the Charles Bravo poisoning, but then there are some cases which are much more obscure, such as the death of Cecil Hambrough (which may or may not have been murder), or the murder of Emily Kaye. I did not get a review copy in advance. Thus, my Kindle edition was downloaded to my device at midnight on May 7th. As I write this review, it is currently 6:30 PM on May 9th. My point is, I have already finished this 448-page book, and I found it irresistible reading, very hard to put down. Martin Edwards has succeeded in making "The Golden Age of Murder" a veritable page-turner. So much of his passion for the genre has been transferred to the page that it made for a real pleasure to read. Overall, "The Golden Age of Murder" is a very good overview of the members of the Detection Club during the Golden Age. Though there are some limitations to this project because of its sheer enormity, Martin Edwards is more than up to the challenge. This is a work of passion, a work which I hope will do much to revise lazy narratives about the history of detective fiction. If you are a casual fan just dipping your toe into the waters of classic mysteries, or if you’re a hard-core fan eager to learn more about how these great writers interacted, this is an accessible page-turner of a book for you.

• necessario

  testo indispensabile per chi, come me, ha la passione del poliziesco classico. il testo in lingua originale necessita spesso l'aiuto di un buon dizionario ma allo stesso tempo è utile per ripassare un po' di inglese

• The Golden Age of Murder

  This is a history of the Detection Club; an elite social network of crime writers, during the Golden Age period of 1930 – 1949. The book begins in 1937, with Ngaio Marsh attending a ritual dinner to elect the new President of the Detection Club, complete with ‘Eric the Skull’ and a host of crime writers who included founding members Dorothy L Sayers, Anthony Berkeley and Agatha Christie. Between the years this book covers, thirty nine members were elected. In order to be admitted to this elite company, writers had to produce work of ‘admitted merit’ – which was basically a code to keep out popular authors that members considered ‘crude’ such as Tiger Standish or ‘Sapper.’ As well as being a fascinating history of the Detection club during this Golden era for crime writing, the author gives biographies of those involved, their relationships with each other, and also detours to discuss true crimes of the time which inspired the members. Many of the members found the Club a refuge, where they could be themselves and discuss their craft with those who would understand their problems. Anthony Berkeley first approached other writers about organising a dining club to discuss matters concerning their craft and it led to many collaborative writing projects. Importantly, criticisms levelled at Golden Age fiction are also tackled. Often derided as ‘cosy’ the author points out that most people were unwilling to face too much violence after the First World War and wished to be entertained. In a time of financial hardship, in the depression, novels set in exotic locations also gave a sense of escapism to readers. While living in a bed sit and coping with innumerable problems – including the personal tragedy of having to have her illegitimate son adopted and never publicly acknowledging him – Dorothy L Sayers responded by making her central character, Lord Peter Wimsey, have all the privilege and security that she was denied. If you do enjoy Golden Age detective fiction then you will certainly adore this book as much as I did. The author muses on plots, novels, true crime of the era, how the authors used their books to refer to each other and there are endless interesting snippets and new books to discover. This book has, in fact, cost me an awful lot – because whilst reading it, I have constantly had to stop and look up authors and download books that I have missed or want to re-read. So many of my personal favourites are in here; from the three central characters of the book – Berkeley, Sayers and Christie – to Nicholas Blake, E.C.Bentley, John Dickson Carr, Gladys Mitchell, Margery Allingham, Edmund Crispin, Michael Innes and many, many more. My only sadness here was that one of my very favourite crime authors of the period, Christianna Brand, was obviously not liked by Martin Edwards, whose sniping whenever he mentioned her became a little wearing. Regardless of her love of gossip and possible unreliability, she was the author of many excellent crime novels, including “Green for Danger,” and I felt she was being a little singled out for criticism. That aside, this was a tremendous read and I absolutely loved it and recommend it highly to any lovers of crime novels from the era between the wars.

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