From an imaginary history of Alaskan Jews to a compelling glimpse of the CIA, we pick the 10 most pleasurable reading experiences of the year.
By Laura Miller Dec 12, 2007
-
Yes, detective novels are lousy -- if you're too lazy to search out the good ones! Mystery readers (and quite a few mystery writers) strike back at Ben Yagoda.
January 8, 2004
-
Robert Parker, Dennis Lehane, Lawrence Block, Michael Connelly -- I've read them all. Amid the logrolling and endless hype, one thing gets obscured: Raymond Chandler and Ross Macdonald did it first, and did it a lot better.
By Ben Yagoda
January 6, 2004
-
The creator of Philip Marlowe has been called an imitator and a hack, but he deserves his lonely, disillusioned corner in the American literary canon.
By Allen Barra
July 31, 2002
-
Humphrey Bogart and Howard Hawks get Raymond Chandler so right, who cares if the plot doesn't square?
By Michael Sragow
August 9, 2000
-
Are the ends supposed to justify the means? Or is it the other way around?
By Jacqueline Carey
March 24, 2000
-
Gumshoes and old men edition.
By Greil Marcus
October 18, 1999
-
The world's coolest crime writer has an uncanny ear for wry dialogue and a deep belief in lives with second acts.
By Sean Elder
September 28, 1999
-
Five great noir novels from the post-Chandler generations.
By David Bowman
June 28, 1999
-
Sex ed. takes a beating in Minneapolis; Slovenia hires a PR firm; black Sam Spades take the whodunit stage.
By Jenn Shreve
May 28, 1999
Salon Book Awards 2007
The case of the overrated mystery novel
The case for Raymond Chandler
Glenn Greenwald
War Room
Broadsheet