Review
For schools supporting the study of popular literature at the undergraduate level.Choice

Book Description
Ross Macdonald is best known as the creator of private detective Lew Archer and as the author of such works as The Drowning Pool (1950) and The Underground Man (1971). This reference is a convenient guide to his life and works.

About the Author
ROBERT L. GALE is Professor Emeritus of English at the University of Pittsburgh. His previous books include A Dashiell Hammett Companion (2000), An Ambrose Bierce Companion (2001), and A Lafcadio Hearn Companion (2002), all available from Greenwood Press.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"Ross Macdonald is best known as the creator of private detective Lew Archer and as the author of such works as The Drowning Pool (1950) and The Underground Man (1971). One of the most popular American mystery writers of the 20th century, he is often compared to Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler - authors from whom he borrowed literary techniques - but is generally considered more serious and complex, often writing about dysfunctional families in academic settings. This reference is a convenient guide to his life and works." This reference includes numerous alphabetically arranged entries for individual works, characters, and brief critical commentaries. Longer entries cite works for further reading, and the volume closes with a selected, general bibliography. Entries are cross-referenced, and the book includes a chronology and detailed index.

SYNOPSIS

A-Z entries for individual works, characters, family members, and professional acquaintances of Ross MacDonald make this a convenient guide to his life and works.

FROM THE CRITICS

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