Sharing my enthusiasm

What a delicious—and intimidating—opportunity.

A friend who is new to mysteries asked me to suggest books that exemplify the best of the genre.

This request delighted me because I love good mysteries and enjoy “converting” readers who are either unfamiliar with the genre or who denigrate it as not “literary” enough to signify.

The request also intimidated me—well, a little—because my friend is Shannon Ravenel, co-founder of Algonquin Press. She recently retired as an editor there, shepherding her own imprint, working with authors like Lee Smith and Jill McCorkle. Over her long career, she has worked with a range of top Southern literary lights, and, for 12 years, was series editor for the Best American Short Stories anthologies. Her tastes are discerning and she sets the bar high.

We met when I interviewed Shannon for an article about Algonquin a couple of years ago; since then, we’ve met every month or so for lunch and book chat. She’s a wonderful reader and shares her enthusiasms, and, often, books, generously. We lock horns occasionally—two recent short story collections drew our ire, as she loved the one I hated, and vice-versa—but we generally share the similar taste in books.

After Shannon read and enjoyed a “page-turner” I’d passed on to her (mainly because it centered on the contentious New York publishing scene), she asked me to recommend a few books in the mystery/suspense/thriller category. Such a great assignment—but daunting. I’ve been reading mysteries for decades: how to choose “the best”?

Perfectionism is futile, as we know, so I decided to do my best and recommend half a dozen authors that I find outstanding. Each has a series (or several), so a new fan can go deep, if the first book appeals. Here’s the list:

John Harvey—British author of a couple of police procedural series, poet, jazz lover. Fun to start with the first of the Charles Resnick series featuring a shambling, charming detective: Lonely Hearts. Harvey’s blog, full of observations on art, travel, soccer, music, and writing, is fun to follow.

http://mellotone70up.wordpress.com

Susan Hill—Another Brit who writes intelligent, character-driven police procedurals set in a cathedral city and featuring an enigmatic detective and his complex family. I’d vote, again, to start with the first one: The Various Haunts of Men.

http://www.susanhill.org.uk

Deborah Crombie—American who writes police procedurals set in England. She’s created two wonderful characters, Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James, partners in work and life, who grapple with family and domestic matters while they solve crimes. Her website is a great place to explore and gives a list of the books in order: http://www.deborahcrombie.com

Henning Mankell—A Swedish writer and human rights advocate whose series featuring Kurt Wallandar sets the bar for socially conscious detective stories. The first in the series is Faceless Killers. His website is terrific.

http://henningmankell.com

Margaret Maron—Closer to home, this North Carolina writer has written many mysteries, including the wonderful series featuring Judge Deborah Knott and her vast, entertaining family. The mysteries accent good plotting, humor, and a concern for social issues.

http://www.margaretmaron.com

Louise Penny—Canadian author who creates the atmospheric Quebec settings and honorable detective, Armand Gamache. (I recently wrote about Penny in my May 1 blog.)

http://www.louisepenny.com

Oh—it’s so hard to stop. How can I omit the classics—work by George Simenon, Janwillem Van De Wetering, Josephine Tey, Ngaio Marsh? And how can I leave P.D. James off the list?

But my goal is to inspire, not to overwhelm, so I’ll contain myself.

Readers: what mystery authors would you add to the “must read” list?

Family Feud

Louise Penny is threatening to divide our family.

My son-in-law Mike is a huge fan. He’s read everything she’s written, from the first novel (Still Life) to her latest, (How the Light Gets In), for which he stood in line at a recent reading to get her autograph.

My daughter Katherine, also a mystery fan, derides his preference for “teacup mysteries.”

Mike, I should add, is a scientist who relishes hard data, watches football, and builds things, like fences and decks. And he also admires Scandinavian noir writers like Jo Nesbo, hardly a cozy writer. He’s a guy’s guy with a soft side.

And, because I respect his taste in mysteries, I thought I’d give Penny another try. My previous readings of her novels had left me with mixed feelings: I admire her writing, and her complex characters and her way of evoking place, but sometimes have felt she took too long to get to the point.

But I’m changing my mind. After reading Mike’s autographed copy of How the Light Gets In, I decided it was time to start at the beginning. So, I read Still Life, published in 2005, the first of her nine novels featuring Armand Gamache, chief inspector with the Surete du Quebec, and a couple of her subsequent mysteries.

What I’m discovering is that Penny has created a place like no other and a protagonist like no other. Although Gamache lives in Quebec City, his investigations frequently take him to Three Pines, a tiny village in the woods, apparently not marked on any map. This place, a sort of rural Canadian Shangri-La, is home to an assortment of characters who are flawed, generous, mysterious, and occasionally amusing. The closed community setting often means that the term “cozy” is bestowed on a mystery. But Three Pines is not cozy in the usual sense. Although there are comforting sensory elements (especially the café au lait always available at the bistro), the village is too replete with dark secrets ever to be deemed cozy.

And Gamache, singular among all the protagonists in mysteries I can think of, is a good man. He’s complex, yes, and has his share of human failings, but he is essentially a good man. His integrity is the force behind all his investigations, and his compassion helps us see all the characters—even “the bad guys”—as fully formed human beings.

All is not sweetness and light in Gamache’s world: the stakes are high, with murder and corruption in high places a driving force. But the detective, channeling Penny’s views, tells us he believes that  “light would banish the shadows. That kindness was more powerful than cruelty, and that goodness existed, even in the most desperate places. He believed that evil had its limits.”

Maureen Corrigan, book critic for NPR’s Fresh Air, observed that the formula for Penny’s series has evolved into “one part foul play, three parts morality play.” And no doubt about it—Gamache is the moral compass in his world.

Yesterday, How the Light Gets In was nominated for an Edgar, the Mystery Writers of America prestigious award for best novel. If Penny wins, the prize will be among dozens she has racked up over the years, deservedly so. Her assured storytelling and complex, mostly admirable, characters lift her work out of the genre category and well into the realm of literary fiction.

So, sorry, Katherine—I have to stand with Mike on this one. No teacup mystery here. Give Penny another chance. I did and I’m glad.