The Fabulous Clipjoint

by Fredric Brown

Book Overview

In the rough edges of 1940s Chicago, the discovery of a corpse in an alleyway isn't always enough to cause a big stir--especially when the victim is killed in the midst of a night-long bender, caught between barrooms in what appears to be a mugging gone awry. Which is why the police don't take a huge interest in finding the murderer of Wallace Hunter, a linotype operator who turns up dead after a solitary drinking adventure that led through many...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1613162545
• ISBN13: 9781613162545
• Release Date: December 2021
• Publisher: American Mystery Classics
• Length: 211 Pages
• Weight: 0.60 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.3" x 7.9"

Customer Reviews

Moving to another generation

Fredric Brown is one of the truly great authors. I purchased this to share his writing with my college junior grandson who was not familiar with him. It worked! He went out and found more.

Telegraphing a Surprise Ending

Ed Hunter's father, an alcoholic printer with a shrewish wife, is murdered on his way home from a late night binge. Aside from an alcoholic witch of a stepmother and an over-sexed younger stepsister (neither of whom he particularly likes) the only family Ed has left is Uncle Ambrose, an itinerant carnival worker that Ed hasn't seen in over a decade. Ed searches out his Uncle Am and together they set off on a quest to find and punish the killer. Under Uncle Am's guidance Ed learns (1) that his father wasn't the mediocrity Ed thought him to be, (2) that he, Ed, is capable of much more than he ever imagined, and (3) who killed his father. Fredric Brown was the master of the surprise ending. The ending of "Clipjoint" is all-the-more surprising because he telegraphs the identity of the killer but still manages to bring off a number of unexpected twists. I've known and enjoyed Fredric Brown for decades as a science fiction writer. This is my first taste of Brown's mystery writing. I'll be back for more.

Good Mystery Introducing Ed and Am

Eighteen-year-old Ed Hunter wakes up one morning to the news that his father has been robbed and murdered whilst visiting a few bars around town. This leaves Ed alone with his stepmother and her daughter, a prospect he doesn't find too appealing. So he immediately sets off to find his Uncle Ambrose, a man he has always admired, to tell him of his father's death.It's from the meeting with Uncle Ambrose that the book's pace really picks up as he takes charge and gives Ed the direction he needs. They set about investigating the murder of Ed's father using all of their combined talents, which turn out to be surprisingly considerable. Ed and Am discover they make a good team together as they methodically piece together clues and follow up leads.This is a great introduction to Ed and Am Hunter, who star in a further 6 books after this one. Both characters are your typical average nice guys who manage to adapt well to their surroundings. Adding to their appeal is the mixture of youth and experience allowing us to learn the craft of detection along with Ed as Ambrose shows him the ropes.

Both a great mystery and coming of age story. An all timer.

After almost a decade of publishing pulp sci-fi and mystery short stories, Fredric Brown had his first novel published in 1947. Entitled THE FABULOUS CLIPJOINT, it was both a marvelous mystery as well as a superb "coming-of-age" story. The novel was so well received that it won the prestigious Edgar award for the Best First Mystery Novel by an American the following year. Brown would go on to write 6 more novels and at least 2 short stories starring young Ed Hunter and his fraternal uncle Am as they solved mysteries in and around Chicago. All were excellent, but this first one is special.The novel opens with teenager Ed getting the news that his father has been murdered. While he cared deeply for his father, he has never truly come to know him. His uncle Ambrose comes to assist with the family's grieving, then stays on to help Ed find the murderer. During the process Ed comes to learn about himself, the father he never really knew, and comes to terms with his feelings for his stepmother and stepsister. His own confusion about his life and his emotions make up as important a part of the story as does his and his carny (former private eye) uncle's delving into the night life and mean streets of Chicago while searching for the killer.Be warned Brown was known as the "O. Henry" of both mystery and sci-fi due to his shocker endings, and this first novel is no exception. This is a great book, and it seems that it will soon be back in print. I hope so, as it is one of the best hard boiled novels of its era. The passage of time has done little to "date" it. It is still as compelling and hard to put down as ever. I can't recommend this one enough.

Ed & Am Hunter: The Early Years

The 1st of 7 novels by the late, great Fredric Brown concerning the adventures of the brash, young Ed Hunter & his "shortish, fattish, smartish" uncle. Brown's only series characters, Ed & Ambrose are two of my all time favorite detectives. Yet they don't really become detectives proper until the 3rd book, The Bloody Moonlight. I won't spoil any of it for you here, but let me just say that these books have given me great pleasure and they are way underrated amongst the canon of detective literature.