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SPOOKS,
SPIES, AND PRIVATE EYES :

Black Mystery, Crime, And Suspense Fiction Of The 20th Century**

1995

Edited By Paula L. Woods

Doubleday Hardcover

ISBN : 0-385-47827-5

Main Street Books Trade Paperback

ISBN : 0-385-47955-7 |
SPOOKS, SPIES, AND PRIVATE EYES brings together for the
first time a collection of the best mystery and crime fiction
by black authors from around the world—much of it long out
of print, generally unavailable, or not previously published.

For years, Charlie Chan's stereotypical sidekick Birmingham
Brown, popularized by the 1930s movie series, was the only
commonly seen image of the black detective. And yet, by
1932, Rudolph Fisher had already written THE CONJURE-MAN
DIES, the first detective novel to feature a black protagonist.
In this sequel work, John Archer, a suave Harlem physician,
and his detective pal Perry Dart provided a unique twist
on the Holmes/Watson team, and foreshadowed Chester Himes's
memorable duo, Coffin Ed Johnson and Grave Digger Jones,
who dominated the literary black crime scene for about thirty
years—from the 1950s to the 1980s.

Ranging from Fisher and Himes to the influential nongenre
writers Richard and Ann Petry; from the political thrillers
of John A. Williams and Samuel Greenlee to the international
perspective of Mike Phillips and Njarni Simon; from the
earliest mystery story by an African-American (written in
1900) to modern mainstream authors including Walter Mosley,
Barbara Neely, and Eleanor Taylor Bland, SPOOKS, SPIES,
AND PRIVATE EYES is an eclectic, rich, and immensely entertaining
compendium that is sure to delight a wide and various audience.

SPOOKS, SPIES, AND PRIVATE EYES was awarded the "Outstanding
Contribution to Publishing" award from the Black
Caucus of the American Library Association . It
was also a nominee for the Anthony and Macavity awards.

**This book is currently out of print but may be found through
one of the following bookseller networks :

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