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The Penguin Classic Crime Omnibus
In this uncommon anthology, the master of crime fiction, Julian Symons, has selected the less familiar stories of such famous crime writers as Chesterton, Doyle, Bierce, and Poe.
378 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1984
About the author
Julian Symons
259 books68 followersJulian Gustave Symons is primarily remembered as a master of the art of crime writing. However, in his eighty-two years he produced an enormously varied body of work. Social and military history, biography and criticism were all subjects he touched upon with remarkable success, and he held a distinguished reputation in each field.
His novels were consistently highly individual and expertly crafted, raising him above other crime writers of his day. It is for this that he was awarded various prizes, and, in 1982, named as Grand Master of the Mystery Writers of America - an honour accorded to only three other English writers before him: Graham Greene, Eric Ambler and Daphne Du Maurier. He succeeded Agatha Christie as the president of Britain's Detection Club, a position he held from 1976 to 1985, and in 1990 he was awarded the Cartier Diamond Dagger from the British Crime Writer.
Symons held a number of positions prior to becoming a full-time writer including secretary to an engineering company and advertising copywriter and executive. It was after the end of World War II that he became a free-lance writer and book reviewer and from 1946 to 1956 he wrote a weekly column entitled "Life, People - and Books" for the Manchester Evening News. During the 1950s he was also a regular contributor to Tribune, a left-wing weekly, serving as its literary editor.
He founded and edited 'Twentieth Century Verse', an important little magazine that flourished from 1937 to 1939 and he introduced many young English poets to the public. He has also published two volumes of his own poetry entitled 'Confusions about X', 1939, and 'The Second Man', 1944.
He wrote hie first detective novel, 'The Immaterial Murder Case', long before it was first published in 1945 and this was followed in 1947 by a rare volume entitled 'A Man Called Jones' that features for the first time Inspector Bland, who also appeared in Bland Beginning.
These novles were followed by a whole host of detective novels and he has also written many short stories that were regularly published in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine. In additin there are two British paperback collections of his short stories, Murder! Murder! and Francis Quarles Investigates, which were published in 1961 and 1965 resepctively.
His novels were consistently highly individual and expertly crafted, raising him above other crime writers of his day. It is for this that he was awarded various prizes, and, in 1982, named as Grand Master of the Mystery Writers of America - an honour accorded to only three other English writers before him: Graham Greene, Eric Ambler and Daphne Du Maurier. He succeeded Agatha Christie as the president of Britain's Detection Club, a position he held from 1976 to 1985, and in 1990 he was awarded the Cartier Diamond Dagger from the British Crime Writer.
Symons held a number of positions prior to becoming a full-time writer including secretary to an engineering company and advertising copywriter and executive. It was after the end of World War II that he became a free-lance writer and book reviewer and from 1946 to 1956 he wrote a weekly column entitled "Life, People - and Books" for the Manchester Evening News. During the 1950s he was also a regular contributor to Tribune, a left-wing weekly, serving as its literary editor.
He founded and edited 'Twentieth Century Verse', an important little magazine that flourished from 1937 to 1939 and he introduced many young English poets to the public. He has also published two volumes of his own poetry entitled 'Confusions about X', 1939, and 'The Second Man', 1944.
He wrote hie first detective novel, 'The Immaterial Murder Case', long before it was first published in 1945 and this was followed in 1947 by a rare volume entitled 'A Man Called Jones' that features for the first time Inspector Bland, who also appeared in Bland Beginning.
These novles were followed by a whole host of detective novels and he has also written many short stories that were regularly published in Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine. In additin there are two British paperback collections of his short stories, Murder! Murder! and Francis Quarles Investigates, which were published in 1961 and 1965 resepctively.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 25, 2021
A bit of a lacklustre, dated combination of stories - and while many of the stories aren’t very good in my opinion, they’re all for the most part exquisitely written. Which is something.
The sum of this omnibus is somehow greater than its parts. And I must say, that PD James short story ‘The Victim’ was quite aptivating.
The sum of this omnibus is somehow greater than its parts. And I must say, that PD James short story ‘The Victim’ was quite aptivating.
August 26, 2022
A collection of 21 classic short crime stories, edited and briefly introduced by Julian Symons. Most of the authors are well-known, although Symons has often chosen lesser-known stories from these authors. Some of the stories are surprisingly weak for a collection like this, but some are simply excellent. The inverted mysteries were among the strongest, namely those by Q Patrick, P D James, and Roy Vickers, as well as the final story by "Arthur Williams", which was (sadly!) the author's only published story. Sayers' "The Man Who Knew How" is a classic that I have enjoyed before. The Roald Dahl story is fantastically creepy. And I appreciated the inclusion of a lesser-known Poe.
I also enjoyed the editor's scathing commentary about some of the authors' other works, particularly how he introduces the Sayers story by describing her Wimsey novels as "insufferably snobbish", and expressing his disappointment that she wasted so much time on them. Oh Julian!
I also enjoyed the editor's scathing commentary about some of the authors' other works, particularly how he introduces the Sayers story by describing her Wimsey novels as "insufferably snobbish", and expressing his disappointment that she wasted so much time on them. Oh Julian!
February 25, 2024
This 1984 selection of crime short stories includes well known authors like Conan Doyle, Chesterton, and P.D. James, but also some lesser-known writers whose selected stories are brilliant. I particularly enjoyed encountering the work of Roy Vickers ("The Man Who Murdered in Public") and Q. Patrick ("All the Way to the Moon"). There is a Roahl Dahl story, "The Landlady," that gently sent a chillup my spine.
September 15, 2021
Enjoyed these rare gems.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews