Skip to content

The Perfect Murder: A Study in Detection
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

The Perfect Murder: A Study in Detection Paperback - 2001

by David Lehman

Drawing on a selection of the best British and American detective fiction past and present, Lehman takes readers on a probing investigation of why men and women of all educational and social backgrounds are continually fascinated by the murder mystery.


From the publisher

In this lively, enjoyable look at the best American and British detective fiction, David Lehman investigates the mystery of mysteries: the profound satisfactions we get from evil, disorder, mayhem, and deception--that we know will be put right by the last page.
As Lehman shows, the detective story draws deeply from ancient storytelling traditions. The mystery's conventions--the locked room, the clue "hidden" in plain sight, the diabolical double, the villainous least likely subject--work on us as childhood fairy tales do; they prey upon our darkest fears, taking us to the brink of the unbearable before restoring a comforting sense of order. The myth of Oedipus, for example, contains the essential elements of a whodunit, with the twist that the murderer the detective pursues is himself.
With their wisecracking gumshoe heroes, Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler fashioned an existential romance out of the detective novel. More recent writers such as Ross MacDonald, P. D. James, and Ruth Rendell have raised the genre to a new level of psychological sophistication. Yet the form evolves still, and Lehman guides us to the epistemological riddles of Jorge Luis Borges and Umberto Eco, who challenge the notion of a knowable truth. Originally published in 1989, this new edition features an additional chapter on the mystery novels of the 1990s.
"A lively study of the development and varieties of the detective story since Poe, its relations with other forms high and low, and the latter-day appropriation of its techniques by such writers as Borges and Eco. . . . A thoroughly intelligent and readable book." --Richard Wilbur, Pulitzer-Prize winning poet
David Lehman is the series editor of both the The Best American Poetry, published by Scribner, and the Poets on Poetry series published by the University of Michigan Press. He is a former Guggenheim Fellow in poetry, a vice president of the National Book Critics Circle, and the author of several books of criticism and collections of poems.

Details

  • Title The Perfect Murder: A Study in Detection
  • Author David Lehman
  • Binding Paperback
  • Edition 2000 1st ed. thu
  • Pages 288
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher University of Michigan Press
  • Date January 1, 2001
  • ISBN 9780472085859 / 0472085859
  • Weight 1.06 lbs (0.48 kg)
  • Dimensions 9.03 x 6.04 x 0.98 in (22.94 x 15.34 x 2.49 cm)
  • Themes
    • Cultural Region: British
  • Library of Congress subjects Detective and mystery stories, English -, Detective and mystery stories, American -
  • Library of Congress Catalog Number 99042207
  • Dewey Decimal Code 813.087
Back to Top

More Copies for Sale

The Perfect Murder: A Study in Detection
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

The Perfect Murder: A Study in Detection

by Lehman, David

  • Used
  • Acceptable
  • Paperback
Condition
Used - Acceptable
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 13
9780472085859
ISBN 10
0472085859
Quantity Available
1
Seller
Seattle, Washington, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 4 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
$9.58
FREE shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
University of Michigan Press, 2001. Paperback. Acceptable. Readable copy. Pages may have considerable notes/highlighting. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less.Dust jacket quality is not guaranteed.
Item Price
$9.58
FREE shipping to USA
The Perfect Murder : A Study in Detection

The Perfect Murder : A Study in Detection

by David Lehman

  • Used
  • good
  • Paperback
Condition
Used - Good
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 13
9780472085859
ISBN 10
0472085859
Quantity Available
1
Seller
Seattle, Washington, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 4 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
$9.58
FREE shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
University of Michigan Press, 2000. Paperback. Good. Pages can have notes/highlighting. Spine may show signs of wear. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less.Dust jacket quality is not guaranteed.
Item Price
$9.58
FREE shipping to USA
The Perfect Murder: A Study in Detection
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

The Perfect Murder: A Study in Detection

by David Lehman

  • Used
  • good
  • Paperback
Condition
Used - Good
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 13
9780472085859
ISBN 10
0472085859
Quantity Available
1
Seller
HOUSTON, Texas, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 4 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
$12.53
FREE shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
University of Michigan Press, 2001-01-01. Paperback. Good.
Item Price
$12.53
FREE shipping to USA
The Perfect Murder: A Study in Detection
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

The Perfect Murder: A Study in Detection

by David Lehman

  • New
  • Paperback
Condition
New
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 13
9780472085859
ISBN 10
0472085859
Quantity Available
1
Seller
Exeter, Devon, United Kingdom
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 4 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
$34.29
$12.77 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
Univ of Michigan Pr, 2000. Paperback. New. 262 pages. 8.75x6.00x1.25 inches.
Item Price
$34.29
$12.77 shipping to USA
The Perfect Murder: A Study in Detection
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

The Perfect Murder: A Study in Detection

by David Lehman

  • Used
  • Paperback
Condition
Used:Good
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 13
9780472085859
ISBN 10
0472085859
Quantity Available
1
Seller
HOUSTON, Texas, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 4 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
$37.63
FREE shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
University of Michigan Press, 2001-01-01. Paperback. Used:Good.
Item Price
$37.63
FREE shipping to USA
The Perfect Murder: A Study in Detection
Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

The Perfect Murder: A Study in Detection

by Lehman, David

  • New
  • Paperback
Condition
New
Binding
Paperback
ISBN 13
9780472085859
ISBN 10
0472085859
Quantity Available
1
Seller
San Diego, California, United States
Seller rating:
This seller has earned a 5 of 5 Stars rating from Biblio customers.
Item Price
$64.22
$5.45 shipping to USA

Show Details

Description:
University of Michigan Press, 2001-01-01. Paperback. New. New. In shrink wrap. Looks like an interesting title!
Item Price
$64.22
$5.45 shipping to USA