--- In rara-avis-l@yahoogroups.com, "phred deVecca" <frogprod@...> wrote:
>
> <JIM WROTE - While I heartily agree with your main point, that Parker revived a mostly moribund mystery sub-genre, Pronzini's "Nameless" predates Spenser by several years
>
> I think the point (or "A" point) was though that Spenser was the one to bring this revival to a big, new audience... in my own case, it was the Spenser books that first made me aware of a "modern" take on the traditional PI and made me seek out and find the others, including Pronzini
>
Well, the take that Parker brought to the PI novel was new in that it dealt with modern issues, but the mechanics, the style and the PI himself were not original, they were in fact copied from Chandler --not necessarily a criticism, since the hole PI game relies heavily on an archaic type of hero, the lone detective. Parker is Chandler's most conspicuous imitator after Howard Browne (a fine writer).
Best,
mrt
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