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New Orleans noir : the classics
Book
2016
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Fiction/Biography Profile
Genre
Fiction
Anthology
Noir
Crime
Mystery
Topics
City life
Hurricanes
Natural disasters
Southern life
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Library Journal Review
Ten years after the publication of the original New Orleans Noir, Akashic's "Noir" series returns with a follow-up. Stories include classics such as Kate Chopin's "The Story of an Hour" and Eudora Welty's "The Purple Hat," as well as contemporary works by popular authors such as James Lee Burke and Nevada Barr. As with other volumes in the series, the stories are mostly dark character studies with an evocative sense of place. Arranged chronologically, the selections provide a glimpse into the Crescent City's evolving attitudes toward race, gender, sexuality, and class. Only one story directly discusses Hurricane Katrina (Burke's "Jesus out to Sea"), but the aftermath is very much a presence in the final pieces in the anthology. Each entry is strong, but the collection is worth reading alone for Poppy Z. Brite's "Mussolini and the Axeman's Jazz," a delirious and brutal ghost story. Verdict Strongly recommended for fans of the Akashic anthologies and Hard Case Crime mysteries and lovers of New Orleans fiction. Devotees of Southern gothic fiction (e.g., the works of Flannery O'Connor and Tom Franklin.) will also find much to enjoy.-Julie Elliott, Indiana Univ. Lib., South Bend © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Publishers Weekly Review
The 18 stories in this irresistible sequel to Smith's New Orleans Noir run chronologically from Armand Lanusse's "A Marriage of Conscience" (1843), about an unusual social custom of the day, to Maurice Carlos Ruffin's "Pie Man" (2012), a powerful examination of ethnic tensions in post-Katrina New Orleans. Famous bylines punctuate the book, but even the lesser-known authors hold their own. Former New Orleans police office O'Neil De Noux's "The Man with Moon Hands" has particular relevance in view of recent controversial police shootings. Ace Atkins's "Last Fair Deal Gone Down" mixes New Orleans's traditions of music and crime. There's one outright ghost story, Poppy Z. Brite's "Mussolini and the Axeman's Jazz," a surrealistic swirl of time travel and assassination. Anyone who knows New Orleans even slightly will relish revisiting the city in story after story. For anyone who has never been to New Orleans, this is a great introduction to its neighborhoods and history. (Mar.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Kirkus Review
Smith, who edited Akashic's original New Orleans Noir (2007), goes back for a second trip to the Big Easy. It's not clear what makes all of Smith's 18 picks classics. For some it's age: Armand Lanusse's "A Marriage of Conscience" dates from 1843. For others, it's clearly bloodlines: O. Henry's "Whistling Dick's Christmas Stocking" and Eudora Welty's "The Purple Hat" come from authors whose literary pedigrees are formidable. But many, like Maurice Carlos Ruffin's "Pie Man," are post-Katrina offerings. What they have in common is a focus not on crime but on human misery. In some, like Ruffin's story and James Lee Burke's "Jesus Out to Sea," the misery is foisted on humans by nature. There's the misery of war, in Shirley Ann Grau's "Miss Yellow Eyes," and the misery of poverty, in Tom Dent's "Ritual Murder." Politics brings its own brand of misery in Poppy Z. Brite's "Mussolini and the Axeman's Jazz." There's the misery of unrequited love in Valerie Martin's "Spats," Nevada Barr's "GDMFSOB," and Ace Atkins' "Last Fair Deal Gone Down" and the misery of hopeless love in Kate Chopin's "The Story of an Hour" and Tennessee Williams' "Desire and the Black Masseur." Children provide their share of misery in John William Corrington's "Pleadings" and Ellen Gilchrist's "Rich." But perhaps the deepest misery of all is the desperation so unfathomable that it can be shared with no one, as in Grace King's "The Little Convent Girl." All this misery makes for a bleak read, and readers looking for a typical noir experience had better fortify themselves. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Summary
New Orleans' tremendous literary tradition shines bright in this outstanding collection of stories from some of the best writers in American history. Julie Smith has masterfully curated this volume with stories published as early as 1843 and as recently as 2012. Classic reprints from: James Lee Burke, Armand Lanusse, Grace King, Kate Chopin, O. Henry, Eudora Welty, Tennessee Williams, Shirley Ann Grau, John William Corrington, Tom Dent, Ellen Gilchrist, Valerie Martin, O'Neil De Noux, John Biguenet, Poppy Z. Brite, Nevada Barr, Ace Atkins and Maurice Carlos Ruffin.
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