As it's the last day of Woolrich month, I'm wondering how
many here have concluded that, as good as many of his novels
are, Woolrich's real strength is in the medium of the short
story.
Significantly, the only Edgar he'd ever win (in his
"William Irish" persona) was in the short story category.
Even more significantly, this was not for any particular
short story, but just for general continued excellence as a
short story writer.
Arguably, the two best films made from his work, THE WINDOW
and READ WINDOW, were both based on short stories.
Speaking for myself, very often his novels don't altogether
work. The many unlikely occurences and coincidences, the
linchpin of so much of Woolrich's work, become too apparent
at book-length. Don't get me wrong. When he's on his game, as
in THE BRIDE WORE BLACK or PHANTOM LADY, he's great.
But his short stories are more consistently good. I recommend
just about any of his short story collections, but NIGHTWEBS
and NIGHT & FEAR are particularly good. NIGHT & FEAR
contain what I've been told was Woolrich's personal favorite
of his short fiction, "Endicott's Girl." My own personal
favorite, "Detective William Brown," is in the same
collection.
Curious to find out how other Rare Birds feel about the
novel/short story question.
JIM DOHERTY
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