Copenhagen Noir

November 29, 2010
The 14 stories in Akashic's Copenhagen anthology largely live up to the noir label in their focus on alienated people who recognize they're wandering in a moral void, who try to discover some significant action they can perform, and who imagine they can find salvation on the mean streets of the Danish capital and suburbs. Superior entries include Naja Marie Aidt's "Women in Copenhagen," about an older writer acting the part of a detective hero; Jonas T. Bengtsson's "One of the Rough Ones," which explores violence-porn's seductiveness; Lene Kaaberbol and Agnette Friis's tale of reluctant heroism, "When the Time Came"; and Setit Öztürk's "The Booster Station," a dissection of youthful "heroism" that turns out to be something very ugly. A few selections are perfunctory or depend on familiarity with series characters to work, but overall the volume has grim, uncomfortable power.

December 1, 2010

The latest entry (with Haiti Noir, see below) in the publisher's series (41 and counting) proves the resilience of, and market for, these locale noirs. Editor Michaelis, a Danish book critic, is both scholarly and insightful in the introduction and outlines how the stories reflect the greed and ennui of modern Denmark in contrast to the Danish idyll depicted in tourist brochures. Especially impressive is Lene Kaaberbol and Agnete Friis's "When The Time Came," which deals deftly with a scavenging expedition, an emergency delivery, sudden death, the plight of illegal immigrants, strong female protagonists, and the desolation of bleak urban landscapes. Seyit Ozturk's "The Booster Station" is brutal, visceral, atmospheric--a bleak embodiment of adolescents working in concert with an implausible goal but written with mastery and elan. There are strong resonances here of Stephen King, but this is a unique voice that will be heard again. VERDICT Although some stories veer from noir orthodoxy, there are fine examples of lyrical writing, noir sensibilities, and insight into the current Danish psyche. Overall, a very impressive anthology.--Seamus Scanlon, Ctr. for Worker Education, CUNY

Copyright 2010 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 15, 2010
Akashics Noir series, which began in 2004, turns to Denmark. Edited by Danish book critic and editor Micha'lis, this volume features stories by authors whose names may be unfamiliar to American readers but whose themes are universal. The stories are organized into three broad categories: (Men and) Women, Mammon, and Corpses, all essential motifs in the noir world. Fans used to the watered-down noir now prevalent in America will notice immediately the much harder edge of these stories, which are much closer to the noir of the 1940s and 50s. Translations effectively render the text in North American idiom while keeping the flavor of the original.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)