Tim Hennessy (1)

Essential reading for any literary-minded resident (or former resident) of Milwaukee, one of America's most overlooked cities. "Noir" here covers the seedy, the squalid, and the somewhat mysterious, not just the hard-boiled and the violent. And Milwaukee, with its crumbling industrial infrastructure and its persistent poverty, provides a lot of material for such a focus, despite the creative startups and the truly impressive little restaurants.

The quality of the writing is very good, and the pleasure of a recognizable setting that is not Los Angeles or New York City is not to be underestimated.… (more)

Milwaukee Noir, edited by Tim Hennessy, is part of Akashic's Noir series. I am fairly new to the series, this is maybe my third volume, but I am loving them so far.

First is a map of the city, with the neighborhoods highlighted in the collection marked. While the map probably isn't absolutely necessary I do really like having it. It gives a nice geographical grounding that simply saying "Milwaukee" doesn't do. I have visited the city several times, while stationed at Great Lakes years ago, so the map had me trying to figure out where I had been.

In both this volume and the series as a whole the concept of what is noir is left fairly open. The writers can make it about crime or they can make it just plain old dark and oppressive. Atmosphere is key and the writers all tell compelling stories. Like any collection, there are ones I like more and ones I like less but all in all this is a strong collection of short stories, period. They also happen to be of the same genre.

Social commentary is a big part of noir fiction and this volume illustrates some of the issues we face in society. The perspectives are likely different from the reader's, they were for me, even on topics I might have given thought to. So on top of being entertaining (well, as entertaining as dark literature can be) the stories are also thought provoking.

I highly recommend this to readers of short stories, fans of noir or crime stories, and of course anyone familiar with Milwaukee. Nothing makes a book more compelling than knowing the locations mentioned throughout. I'm not familiar enough to be part of that third group, but the first two are definitely me.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via LibraryThing Early Reviewers.… (more)

The Akashic Noir series is my favorite collection of noir fiction and I've been fortunate enough to have read many of these books. I now count Milwaukee Noir as one of my favorites. There's not a disappointing story in those that editor Tim Hennessy has put together. Milwaukee Noir's stories have a certain flavor that rings true, a Midwestern city, founded and formed by immigrants, a community with a high crime rate and rising poverty level, peopled with characters who cling to their town no matter what the circumstances as Milwaukee clings to the shores of Lake Michigan.… (more)