A past President of the Private Eye Writers of America, David Housewright won a prestigious Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America and three Minnesota Book Awards for his Rushmore McKenzie and Holland Taylor private eye novels as well as other tales of murder and mayhem in the Midwest.
His new novel is Man in the Water: A McKenzie Novel.
Recently I asked Housewright about what he was reading. His reply:
I tend not to read other writers’ books while I’m working on my own. Fortunately, I finished my next book about six weeks ago and sent it off to my publisher. I’ve been binging ever since. Two books stand out.Learn more about the book and author at David Housewright's website and Facebook page.
The first is Small Mercies by Dennis Lehane. I’ve always maintained that the best crime novels are always about more than thecrime and whodunit; are always about more than who killed Mr. Body in the library with a candlestick (It was Miss Scarlet, by the way. It’s always Miss Scarlet). This book deals with race hatred, family, the criminality of power, personal salvation and so much more. It is thought-provoking as well as dark and suspenseful. A terrific book!
The second is Once in a Blue Moon Lodge by Lorna Landvik. Landvik might have the most authentic Minnesota voice of all the very many great writers from my home state. It is most decidedly not a crime novel, in case you’re wondering, and deals with love – love between parents and their children, betweenhusbands and wives, between lovers, between people who are unrelated but considered family. It is also thought-provoking as well as warm and funny.
I recommend that read them back-to-back like I did.
My Book, The Movie: The Last Kind Word.
The Page 69 Test: The Last Kind Word.
The Page 69 Test: Stealing the Countess.
The Page 69 Test: What the Dead Leave Behind.
The Page 69 Test: First, Kill the Lawyers.
The Page 69 Test: In a Hard Wind.
Q&A with David Housewright.
--Marshal Zeringue
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