Stuff I Love meme - Day 10

[dimity_blue]

10. The Golden Age of detective fiction.

This would be classic murder mystery novels mainly from the 1920s-30s. Famous authors include Agatha Christie, Dorothy L. Sayers, and Margery Allingham.

There's a certain elegant style to the books. The world they inhabit is full of grand houses and servants, cocktails, fast cars, young men with slicked back hair, and young women in short dresses.

There is a drawback though: The language is of its time. Anti-semitism and racial slurs abound. The books, plots, and writing are excellent, but it's a heck of an eye opener to read them.

Comments

[corvidology]

A love we share. :D

And agreed on all points. They really can be an eye opener.

I also love the American hard boiled detective fiction from the same era, Raymond Chandler in particular. Oh and the same drawbacks.

[dimity_blue]

It is awful. I re-read Unnatural Causes (Dorothy L. Sayers) recently and they use the 'n' word over and over in one scene.

[thisbluespirit]

Very true! (On both counts, though, yes. :-/)

[dimity_blue]

:o(

[swordznsorcery]

I've never understood why cars don't still have running boards. :)

Never got into Christie so much, but I love a bit of Allingham. Campion is such a great character. The contempoary attitudes do pull one up short at times, certainly. The first time I read "Police At The Funeral" was a bit of a shock (that's the one where the formidable old matriarch has definite opinions on mixed race relations). Sometimes they surprise you in other ways though. Allingham wrote a non-Campion called "Black Plumes" (1940), and in that one the heroine really tears into the other characters for being racist.

I love films from this era too. Dressing for dinner, and night clubs with jazz bands!

[dimity_blue]

Dorothy L. Sayers too. I re-read Unnatural Causes recently and they use the 'n' word over and over in one scene.

The adaptations look fantastic on screen, don't they?

[swordznsorcery]

Depends which adaptations! I did enjoy the Suchet Poirots, at least to begin with. They lost me some time before they ended though. Not sure what happened. I haven't watched the most recent BBC Christies either, although that shouldn't be taken as a slight. I just don't tend to watch much, and have to really be in the mood.

I did enjoy the Beeb's 1980s version of Lord Peter Wimsey, but I remember there being a lot of complaining letters to "Points Of View" about it! I hadn't read the books yet then. It could use another adaptation, I think. With its female lead, I'm amazed it hasn't caught somebody's eye recently. Loved Peter Davison as Campion, but again, it could do with a remake. Bit bored with all the TV Christie, to be honest!