# American Noir: 11 Classic Crime Novels of the 1930s, 40s, & 50s: A Library of America Boxed Set - Boxed Set

by **Robert Polito** (Author)

Collects:  
**CRIME NOVELS: AMERICAN NOIR OF THE 1930s & 40s**  
_The Postman Always Rings Twice_ by James M. Cain  
_They Shoot Horses, Don't They?_ by Horace McCoy  
_Thieves Like Us_ by Edward Anderson  
_The Big Clock_ by Kenneth Fearing  
_Nightmare Alley_ by William Lindsay Gresham  
_I Married a Dead Man_ by Cornell Woolrich

990 pages - 978-1-883011-46-8 Library of America volume #94

**CRIME NOVELS: AMERICAN NOIR OF THE 1950s**  
_The Killer Inside Me_ by Jim Thompson  
_The Talented Mr. Ripley_ by Patricia Highsmith  
_Pick-Up_ by Charles Willeford  
_Down There_ by David Goodis  
_The Real Cool Killers_ by Chester Himes

892 pages - 978-1-883011-49-9 Library of America volume #95

This adventurous two-volume collection presents a rich vein of modern American writing too often neglected in mainstream literary histories. Evolving out of the terse and violent hardboiled style of the pulp magazines, noir fiction expanded over the decades into a varied and innovative body of writing. Tapping deep roots in the American literary imagination, the novels in this volume explore themes of crime, guilt, deception, obsessive passion, murder, and the disintegrating psyche. With visionary and often subversive force they create a dark and violent mythology out of the most commonplace elements of modern life. The raw power of their vernacular style has profoundly influenced contemporary American culture and writing.

**LIBRARY OF AMERICA** is an independent nonprofit cultural organization founded in 1979 to preserve our nation's literary heritage by publishing, and keeping permanently in print, America's best and most significant writing. The Library of America series includes more than 300 volumes to date, authoritative editions that average 1,000 pages in length, feature cloth covers, sewn bindings, and ribbon markers, and are printed on premium acid-free paper that will last for centuries.

### Author Biography

ROBERT POLITO, editor, is a poet, biographer, and critic whose _Savage Art: A Biography of Jim Thompson_ received the National Book Critics Circle Award. He directs the Graduate Writing Program at the New School and is the editor of _David Goodis: Five Noir Novels of the 1940s & 50s_, also from The Library of America.

**Number of Pages:** 1882

**Dimensions:** 2.7 x 8.5 x 5.5 IN

**Illustrated:** Yes

**Publication Date:** April 12, 2012

## Details

- **Price:** 85.0 USD
- **Vendor:** Books by splitShops
- **Type:** Books
- **Tags:** Books by splitShops, Shopify Collective

## Variants

| Variant | Price | Available |
|---------|-------|-----------|
| Default Title | 85.00 USD | In stock |

## Images

- American Noir: 11 Classic Crime Novels of the 1930s, 40s, & 50s: A Library of America Boxed Set - Boxed Set

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