Chicago Noir edited by Joe Meno

I've always enjoyed reading noir.  Dark, ironic mysteries are a good read to me.  Since this collection includes old classics as well as some new stories, I knew it would be good.

Akashic Books sent me an ARC of the book for review (thank you).  It has been published, so check with your local bookstore for a copy.

This book contains classic reprints from: Harry Stephen Keeler, Sherwood Anderson, Max Allan Collins, Richard Wright, Nelson Algren, Fredric Brown, Patricia Highsmith, Barry Gifford, Stuart M. Kaminsky, Libby Fischer Hellmann, Sara Paretsky, Percy Spurlark Parker, Sandra Cisneros, Hugh Holton, and Stuart Dybek.

I wasn't disappointed by any of the stories.  I did find a few old favorites and met a few new (to me) authors.  My favorites were:   I'll Cut Your Throat Again, Kathleen by Fredric Brown (an old favorite author of mine), Skin Deep by Sara Paretsky (another favorite), and The Whole World is Watching by Libby Fischer Hellman (a fairly new author for me).

The first story deals with a loss of memory and temporary insanity; the second deals with the common greed of man; and the third sounds a lot like the streets of big cities now.  The first and the last made the biggest impressions on me.  They gave me something to think about.

Read the stories.  They'll give you something to think about, too.