tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443515033089669860.post7757862007583666893..comments2024-03-27T13:26:32.587-07:00Comments on Mystery Fanfare: European & American Crime Fiction: Generalities & Exceptions by Sylvie GranotierJanet Rudolphhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07395834961880172395noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443515033089669860.post-4243778411207897132016-12-21T08:13:46.196-08:002016-12-21T08:13:46.196-08:00"In literary terms, American novels tend to b..."In literary terms, American novels tend to be technically engineered. ... the American capacity to grab the reader, maintain the suspense, surprise and shock at regular moments, in a very deliberate controlled way. ...it sometimes makes for simplified writing. Short chapters, short sentences, quick dialogue—you feel the fear of losing the reader." <br /><br /> I think this covers certain types of books in the US - they're like popsicles - read quickly and forgotten. They're kind of like comic books for grown-ups. The cozy mysteries are also very formulaic. Both seem to have that "fear of losing the reader". And with millennials so focused on the quick fix, this is probably just the start. Luckily, there are still lots of great books to be read!Katy McCoyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18205124269464918598noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443515033089669860.post-1979755356867522232016-12-21T02:42:16.910-08:002016-12-21T02:42:16.910-08:00Very well put, especially about the differences of...Very well put, especially about the differences of ethics. I love old US noir books as they seem to me to be much more accesible from a European point of view, the characters are not so one imensional. I sometimes worry that all the new books coming out of the US aimed at younger adults - crime books included - are overly simplified, they read like romance novels with big, tough heroes and 'feisty' 'girls'. There's something kind of backwards looking in them, as if they wish the world was really so clearly black and white. <br />Lissamelisshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03379231528068984382noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1443515033089669860.post-21416830797811140502016-12-20T11:01:15.754-08:002016-12-20T11:01:15.754-08:00Love this post! I think grey is far more interesti...Love this post! I think grey is far more interesting because it is closer to reality. We often think "evil" is so easy to recognize, but history tends to prove that "evil" has a far more subtle genesis. As for fast pace and short chapters, I think Simenon was the master of that. American mysteries today are much longer and more convoluted. Not necessarily a bad thing but not necessarily the earlier style of "I have to finish this book now". Priscillanoreply@blogger.com