THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW 5that it was Peter Hoeg’s “Smilla’s
Sense of Snow” that first sparked
an American fascination with
Scandinavian noir. It was not.
The founding series that set
everything in motion were the 10
books about Martin Beck by Maj
Sjowall and Per Wahloo that
started the genre and are still the
best of them all, especially as the
series builds.
MICHELE CLARK
PLAINFIELD, VT.TO THE EDITOR:
In these times I am finding that I
can bear to read only nonfiction
or crime fiction, so I was very
happy for all the author sugges-
tions in the recent feature on
Scandinavian noir. I was sorry,
though, that the list could not
expand enough to include two
more fantastic Swedish writers:
Leif GW Persson and Asa Lars-
son. Both offer unusual stories,
featuring difficult and dry humor
in Persson’s case (particularly
his “Story of a Crime” trilogy)
and alienation and grief in
Larsson’s case. I still recall the
deep feeling of readerly delight
when I was beginning on
Persson’s trilogy, and Larsson’s
“The Black Path.”
SARAH MAXIM
BERKELEY, CALIF.CORRECTIONSA review on July 19 about Mag-
gie O’Farrell’s “Hamnet: A Novel
of the Plague” overstated what is
known about the death of Shake-
speare’s son, Hamnet. The cir-
cumstances of his death were not
recorded; it is not known that he
“died of plague.”The Shortlist feature on July 26
misstated the title of a novel by
Anna Downes. It is “The Safe
Place,” not “No Safe Place.”The Shortlist feature last Sunday
misstated the name of the author
of “Biography of Resistance: The
Epic Battle Between People and
Pathogens.” He is Muhammad H.
Zaman, not Mohammed Zahan.[email protected]Letters
TYLER COMRIEThe Way I Speak
TO THE EDITOR:
My personal experience counter-
mands John McWhorter’s con-
tention, in his Aug. 2 review of
Katherine D. Kinzler’s “How You
Say It,” that “the way we talk is
largely out of our control.” In
order to fit in better and not stick
out like a sore thumb, some
immigrants reject their heritage
to adopt the values and lifestyles
of the dominant society. Howev-
er, ideas of the superiority of
Western culture can do lifelong
harm and inculcate hatred of
one’s origins.
As a heavily accented Chinese-
Malaysian student at an Austral-
ian medical school, I once took it
upon myself to adopt the
plummy, sophisticated English
accent I’d encountered in Mer-
chant Ivory films. I had hoped
this would help me fit in with my
peers from elite private schools
once I graduated into medical
practice.
One day, a senior surgeon even
mistook me for a graduate from
the hallowed University of Cam-
bridge. This surreal episode
made me feel as if I had adopted
a fabricated identity. But I have
long since chosen to abandon
this fake accent, resolving to be
my own singular person.
JOSEPH TING
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIAMore NoirTO THE EDITOR:
I was very impressed with your
highly informative and quite
thorough listing of Nordic noir
books in the July 26 issue
(“Northern Exposure”). Howev-
er, I’d like to add a non-Scandina-
vian author: Torquil MacLeod is
a Scot who lives in England, but
his books feature a middle-aged
female detective named Anita
Sundstrom and are set in Malmo,
Sweden. All of his books have
M’s in the title — e.g., “Murder in
Malmo,” “Menace in Malmo,” etc.
— and while somewhat similar in
style to Henning Mankell’s Wal-
lander series they delve far more
into the detective’s personal life
and, in a very effective way,
weave these elements into the
mystery and criminal aspects of
each of the books’ plots.
RICHARD KURTZ
EAST HAMPTON, N.Y.TO THE EDITOR:
I was surprised that Marilyn
Stasio and Tina Jordan declaredWhat to cook
for anyone, anytime.
Discover thousands of expert-tested
recipes, how-to guides for every skill
level, plus more.nytcooking.com