All Shot Up [Paperback]

Chester Himes (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1975

"The greatest find in American fiction since Raymond Chandler."—The Observer [London]

The shocking and explosive hardboiled classic: From murderers to prostitutes, corrupt politicians and racist white detectives, Coffin Ed Johnson and Gravedigger Jones, Harlem's toughest detective duo, must carry the day against an absurdist world of racism and class warfare.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Review

The greatest find in American crime fiction since Raymond Chandler Sunday Times Himes wrote spectacularly successful entertainments, filled with gems of descriptive writing, plots that barely sidestep chaos, characters surreal, grotesque, comic, hip, Harlem recollected as a place that can make you laugh, cry, shudder. -- John Edgar Wideman Chester Himes is one of the towering figures of the black literary tradition. His command of nuances of character and dynamics of plot is preeminent among writers of crime fiction. He is a master craftsman. -- Henry Louis Gates, Jr. A fantasia with a hard brilliant core Evening Standard A fine crime writer of Chandlerian subtlety though in a vein of sheer toughness very much his own The Times That he could channel this pain and misery into some of the greatest crime novels ever written is a testament to his skill as a writer and his spirit as a man. If this is the first Chester Himes novel you will read then, believe me, you are in for a treat. -- Noel "Razor" Smith He belongs with those great demented realists ... whose writing pitilessly exposes the ridiculousness of the human condition -- Will Self Hieronymus Bosch meets Miles Davis The New York Times Chester Himes is the great lost crime writer, as well a great American dissident novelist per se, and an essential witness to his times. Every one of his beyond-cool Harlem novels is cherished by every reader who finds it. -- Jonathan Lethem --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

About the Author

After arriving on the American literary scene with novels of scathing social protest like If He Hollers Let Him Go and The Lonely Crusade, Chester Himes created a pioneering pair of dangerously charming African-American sleuths, Grave Digger Jones and Coffin Ed Johnson, who attempt to maintain some kind of order in a series of violent and funny page-turners. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Signet (October 1, 1975)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451067177
• ISBN-13: 978-0451067173
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars my favourite Coffin Ed/Gravedigger Jones novel, November 7, 2003

By 

John (London, London United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: All shot up (Panther crime) (Paperback)

I can't believe this weird, wonderful thriller is out of print; it's a scandal. This is my favourite of Himes' Harlem Cycle of thrillers. It's a fast-paced, surreal read, and thoroughly entertaining. It's also fascinating because it's set in part in and around the gay scene in Harlem of the 1940s/50s. Himes represents the gay characters with the same misanthropic zeal that he does all the other people in the novel, but is not homophobic - even having one gay character courageously outing himself to alibi his lover. Coffin Ed and Gravedigger were, Himes comments, 'not personal moralists.' Other than that, hardboiled fun laced with trenchant comments on the state of American race relations of the period.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Harlem murder mystery at its best....., September 13, 2003

By 

Dilip S. Kumar (Seattle, WA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: All Shot Up (Thunder's Mouth PR) (Paperback)

This book captures the pulse of Harlem. I was captivated by thee tough as nails detectives and the twists this book takes in its 170 odd pages. The ending is fabulous and unexpected. I would also highly recommend reading "The Conjure Man dies" by Rudolph Fisher, another excellent murder mystery based in Harlem.

9 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars This book was "da bomb", January 23, 1999

By 

Johnny Neal - See all my reviews

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This review is from: All Shot Up (Thunder's Mouth PR) (Paperback)

Lots of action, lots of laughs and the 2 toughest detectives since Spencer & Hawk. If you like Harlem, if you like detective novels, if you like action, this is the book for you. A very quick read. Fans of Walter Mosely should read this book. I wonder if good ol' Bill Clinton is up on Mr. Himes. My only thought is why were there only 2 movies made from Mr. Himes books. And why did I just discover him after I saw one of the movies (A Rage In Harlem)