January 29, 2008
"A Mystery By Any Other Name Is Still A Mystery. . ."
Commentary by Cherie Jung
Usually, in these commentaries, I'm whining about how no one reads anymore. Or no one seems to read mysteries anymore. Or not enough mysteries...
Now that I'm older, I find my eyesight has "faded" as they say. My hands have become very arthritic and with each passing season I find it more and more difficult to hold books open to read -- hardcovers, paperback books, even large-print books -- and, as I've mentioned more than once, I hate audio books. I'm a fast reader and the slower pace of audio books drives me crazy! (See, I can always find something to complain about?!?)
So, what is my point, you ask?
Just this. I've come to realize that while it may be true that not as many people are reading mysteries and crime fiction, compared to days past, they certainly haven't gone out of fashion as the nay-sayers would have liked us to believe was going to happen. Publishers are still printing books and many of those books are mysteries and crime related. Books are still selling. Maybe not where we would like them to be selling -- There's no denying that many small bookstores have gone out of business in the past decade -- but die-hard readers can still get books. Grocery store chains sell them, bookstore chains (evil as we might like to pretend they are) still sell them, small independent bookstores still sell them. You can order them online. You can pick them up at thrift shops. You can check them out of libraries and you can even borrow them from friends who still read.
No, the end of books as we feared has not happened. And though some prefer to download their reading material in e-book format, it's still really a kind of "book" isn't it? And let's not forget that the other terrifying (to some) concept of books being "printed on demand" hasn't yet reached its projected potential either, has it?
But I digress. I had started out with the intent of pointing out that mysteries seem as popular as ever, if not more so. Especially if we add in the mystery, lawyer, and crime programs on network and cable TV. (Although I must admit, it does sometimes seem as if there is a CSI program or spin-off on nearly every channel, every day... and I'm not sure why.)
For those who embrace mysteries of all kinds, we can still get our "fix" of English cozy mysteries on the PBS, A&E, Biography, and BBCAmerica channels. Popular mystery authors' books are still being made into television mysteries and movies. The TV series "Bones" is based on the forensic anthropologist from Kathy Reichs's, Dr. Temperence Brennan series. Several of Minette Walters books have been made into mini-series aired on BBC and PBS. There's "Ruth Rendell," "Inspector Lynley," "Inspector Morse," "Agatha Christie's Miss Marple," "Poirot," "Midsomer Murders," "Rosemary & Thyme" -- just to name a very few -- all available on TV and DVD. And let's not forget the numerous court-based shows, cold-case programs, and true crime shows. Plus, older shows like "Streets of San Francisco" and "Sherlock Holmes" are being re-mastered and released on DVDs. I can't think of a single day or night that some kind of mystery or crime program isn't available on television. Are you a fan of the TV series "Monk?" Have you read the books based on the TV series?
So relax, you're not going to run out of mysteries to read in any near future, now are you?
cj
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