I've only read two of Sue Grafton's famous "alphabet mysteries", maybe three, but two that I actually remember elements from. For the record, they are "K" and "C", in that order, and I seem to recall reading "B", but thumbing through the book just now, nothing truly leaps out at me, so perhaps I read it while half asleep, and it's time to read it again.
After reading "Kinsey and Me", a collection of short stories, I think perhaps it is time to again pick up one of her novels. This lady can craft a mighty fine story.
In case you don't know, Sue Grafton's heroine is 30-something year old, divorced twice, ex-cop turned private eye, Kinsey Millhone. We the readers are told this, in some variation of those words, at the opening of every story, and this collection of short stories originally published in magazines and anthologies, is no exception. Each novel takes a letter of the alphabet and ties it to a crime: "A is for Alibi", "B is for Burglary", "C is for Corpse"etc. The series was begun in 1982, and the stories have remained in the eighties. Kinsey solves the crimes without the aid of the Internet, GPS tracking, or anything else but brains, guts, perseverance, wit, and no small amount of luck.
I found the book while browsing and decided that while I had enjoyed the novels, it wasn't enough to work my way through the entire alphabet. The ones I had read I hadn't read in order, and with each new novel, the task of "catching up" seemed more daunting, as "W" is being published this fall. But a collection of short stories? Sure, I could do that, and if I didn't finish all the stories before the public library respectfully requests the return of their book because other patrons are waiting (this happens to me a lot), I'll still have enjoyed a mystery or two and not have to wait another two or three months for it to be my turn again (also something that happens often).
Many writers have said it is harder to write a short story than it is a novel. I believe this. You don't have time to flesh out a character. Dialog and plot must be concise and you have to win your reader over in 5, 15, 35 pages - not 200, 300, 1100 (nothing against Victor Hugo!) This collection of Kinsey Millhone stories does that, superbly. Dead and disappearing bodies, guns with a history of disappearing and reappearing years later in other crimes, and dysfunctional families are some of the plot lines. My favorites were the slightly creepy ending of "Falling Off the Roof" and the poetic justice of "Full Circle".
the last Kinsey story was commissioned by Lands End for a 40th anniversary catalog in which she plugged one of their jackets. I've read some reviews in which the reviewers were not amused by this story. Myself, I thought it was funny, taking the rapier wit of the character and throwing in product placement for a very nice jacket which I myself used to own. It wasn't intended to be a serious story and I didn't take it as such. Its lightheartedness I felt was a nice segue into the second half of the book.
The second half is actually less than half the book, although it contains half again as many stories. The character in these stories is Kit Blue which the author states is a younger version of herself, in stories she wrote in the years following her mother's death. They are somewhat autobiographical. And they are heartrending. I read the book front to back, although I was tempted to skip ahead, for the knowledge of the inclusion of these stories is what prompted me to put myself on the waiting list for the book. I was curious to see how the author writing about growing up in a household with alcoholic parents might have affected her writing. I didn't really get that question answered.
What I did see in these stories were people I know. Not necessarily those with addictions, unless loneliness and despair can be considered addictions. If you have lived on this planet for more than a decade and you haven't been living under a rock, you know people like Kit Blue's mother and father. You know people who the more you love them, the more they wilt. And you've probably wondered what more you can do for them, and agonized over the fact that your love for them is not only rejected but it somehow inexplicably hurts them. And you've had to struggle to believe what is obviously the truth even though the evidence apparently contradicts it: that their pain is not your fault.
I'm not sure that's what the author intended in combining the two very diverse sets of stories. It's what I got out of it, however. Reading these stories, you probably won't get any answers as to how to help the hurting. But as the stories progress you will journey with Kit past anger and chaos to hope and love. as the author writes, "I wish life could be edited as deftly as prose... what I've noticed, though, is that any attempt to trim out the dark matter takes away some of the good that was also buried in the muck. The past is a package deal and I don't believe there's a way to tell some of the truth without telling most. Wisdom comes at a price."
I'll be honest. Even though I checked the book out for the "and Me" stories, I enjoyed the "Kinsey" stories more. Both, however, make for compelling reading, blending well that can't-put-it-down-edness we readers crave with short segments which allow us to put it down. Both Kinsey and Kit are very likable heroines: kind, smart, courageous and persevering.
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