Hard-Boiled Sentimentality: The Secret History of American Crime Stories

by Leonard Cassuto

Book Overview

Leonard Cassuto's cultural history links the testosterone-saturated heroes of American crime stories to the sensitive women of the nineteenth-century sentimental novel. From classics like The Big Sleep and The Talented Mr. Ripley to neglected paperback gems, Cassuto chronicles the dialogue--centered on the power of sympathy--between these popular genres and the sweeping social changes of the twentieth century, ending with a surprising...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0231126913
• ISBN13: 9780231126915
• Release Date: November 2008
• Publisher: Columbia University Press
• Length: 344 Pages
• Weight: 1.02 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 5.9" x 8.9"