RARA-AVIS: Auster, King, Sharman, and, and, and...

Kevin Smith (kvnsmith@total.net)
Wed, 26 Nov 1997 15:07:33 -0400 Interesting thoughts on noir and hardboiled, and the differences between
them. I enjoyed Auster's New York trilogy, although it's a bit more
conciously arty than I usually go for. He once wrote a "straight" private
eye novel, when he was much younger, Squeeze Play (1982) which was
nominated for a Shamus (under the pseudonym of Paul Benjamin)... It was
okay- not great, not too shabby. (He probably thought he was slumming).Now
that he seems to be really hitting his stride, I wonder if he could write
a really great hardboiled novel? After all, Chandler may not have been able
to write Sanctuary, but could Faulkner have pulled off The Long Goodbye or
The Maltese Falcon? I doubt it.

And Bill, I don't want to stray off target here, but I think Stephen King
(if someone had the balls to edit him) could be a very good writer. His
earlier short stories and novellas, more than a few with crime elements in
them, would have held their own in the days of the pulps, and his affection
for several of the old pulp/hardboiled guys really shows through. He once
spoke of writing a straight hardboiled/noir novel, and joked (I think he
was joking) that he was going to write it in French so that it would at
least have an audience.

And speaking of flying Freud, Fred, sometimes a cigar is just a, er,
carnation? Thanks for filling me in on Brennen-it's nice to know I
remembered him correctly. Any chance he'll ever return?

And someone was asking about Nick Sharman? He's become something of a
sensation, from what I hear, in England. His creator, Mark Timlin, seems to
be one of the not-so-young-anymore turks terrorizing the tea and crumpet
set over there, both on paper and in real life The Sharman books are a
rather bleak, nasty series, more Spillane than Chandler at times, but a
hell of a lot of fun. They've proven to be rather popular in England,
spawning (or at least part of) a wave of British hardboiled writing and
even a television series, which Timlin seems to be satisfied with. Mind
you, he's also quipped, that "As long as the cheque clears" he's satisfied.

NOVELS
A Good Year for the Roses (1988)
Romeo's Tune (1990)
Gun Street Girl (1990)
Take the A-Train (1991)
The Turnaround (1991)
Zip Gun Boogie (1992)
Hearts of Stone (1992)
Falls the Shadow (1993)
Ashes By Now
Pretend We're Dead
Paint It Black (1995)
Find My Way Home (1996)

COLLECTIONS
Sharman and Other Filth (1996)

By the way, judging from the titles, besides American pulp fiction,Timlin
seems to have a thing for all kinds of American pop music (not just jazz),
naming various novels and short stories after the songs of such diverse
artists as Tom Waits, Steve Forbert, George Jones, Duke Ellington, Bob
Seger, etc. In a former life, he was a roadie for rock groups such as T-Rex
and The Who.

And guys, no more cracks about the Canadian weather, please, or we'll send
Celine Dion down there permanently.

Kevin Smith
Web Guy for The Thrilling Detective Web Site
For info, mailto:kvnsmith@total.net

"You wanna talk to me, go ahead and talk"
Bob Dylan, via Sam Spade, in "Tight Connection To My Heart"

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