Crime Novels of the 1960s

By Geoffrey O'Brien (editor),

Book cover of Crime Novels of the 1960s: Nine Classic Thrillers

Book description

Library of America presents a deluxe edition of unforgettable crime thrillers of the 1960s

Here in two volumes are 9 timeless novels, including 4 lost classics now restored to print

In the 1960s a number of gifted writers—some at the peak of their careers, others newcomers—reimagined American crime fiction. Here…

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Why read it?

1 author picked Crime Novels of the 1960s as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Okay, I’m cheating a bit by choosing a two-volume anthology containing nine novels. But I love vintage noir, whether in film or crime fiction, and it’s hard to top this compendium issued by the Library of America, giving hardcover prestige to well-plotted, hardboiled classics of the sort fans used to find on drugstore paperback racks.

Something for everyone here, including an entry in Richard Stark’s series of Parker novels and an Ed McBain police procedural, but the real gem is Dorothy B. Hughes’ The Expendable Man, which fuses its protagonist’s inner fears and paranoia with social ills still relevant…

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