Staten Island Noir

by Patricia Smith

Overview

New York's fifth borough finally enters the Noir Series arena, completing the series tour of the world's noirest city.

“Staten Island is the forgotten borough, lacking a subway system, left out of Jay-Z’s songs, known for organized crime, bad accents, fake tans, and garbage—which makes it a rich setting for Akashic’s noir series . . . In a thrilling tilt-a-whirl of crime and drama, editor Patricia Smith has carefully chosen writers concerned with the true nature of the small suburban borough.” —Electric Literature’s “The Outlet”

Akashic Books continues its groundbreaking series of original noir anthologies, launched in 2004 with Brooklyn Noir. Each story is set in a distinct neighborhood or location within the city of the book.

Brand-new stories by: Bill Loehfelm, S.J. Rozan, Ted Anthony, Todd Craig, Ashley Dawson, Bruce DeSilva, Louisa Ermelino, Binnie Kirshenbaum, Michael Largo, Michael Penncavage, Linda Nieves-Powell, Eddie Joyce, Shay Youngblood, and Patricia Smith.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781617751295
Publisher:	Akashic Books, Ltd.
Publication date:	11/06/2012
Series:	Akashic Noir Series
Pages:	288
Sales rank:	1,072,162
Product dimensions:	5.20(w) x 8.20(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Patricia Smith is the author of six acclaimed poetry volumes, including Blood Dazzler, a finalist for the 2008 National Book Award, and Teahouse of the Almighty, a National Poetry Series selection. Her work has been published in the 2011 editions of both Best American Poetry and Best American Essays. In addition to her poetic works, Smith is also the author of Africans in America, a companion volume to the groundbreaking PBS documentary. She is currently a professor at the City University of New York's College of Staten Island, and serves on the faculties of Cave Canem and the MFA programs at Stonecoast/University of Southern Maine and Sierra Nevada College.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Part I: Family Affair

“Snake Hill” by Bill Loehfelm (Eltingville)

“Sister-in-Law” by Louisa Ermelino (Great Kills)

“When They Are Done with Us” by Patricia Smith (Port Richmond)

“A User’s Guide to Keeping Your Kills Fresh” by Ted Anthony (Fresh Kills)

“Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground” by Shay Youngblood (South Beach)

Part II: Fight or Flight

“Mistakes” by Michael Penncavage (The Ferry)

“Abating a Nuisance” by Bruce DeSilva (Tompkinsville)

“Paying the Tab” by Michael Largo (Four Corners)

“Assistant Professor Lodge” by Binnie Kirshenbaum (Grymes Hill)

Part III: Borough of Broken Dreams

“. . . spy verse spy . . .” by Todd Craig (Park Hill)

“Before It Hardens” by Eddie Joyce (Annadale)

“The Fly-Ass Puerto Girl from the Stapleton Projects” by Linda Nieves-Powell (Stapleton)

“Teenage Wasteland” by Ashley Dawson (Tottenville)

“Lighthouse” by S.J. Rozan (St. George)

Editorial Reviews

Staten Island, the last of New York City’s five boroughs to enter Akashic’s noir series, serves as the setting for this exceptionally strong anthology. One of the best of the 14 selections is Smith’s “When They Are Done with Us,” a chilling story of a mother’s abuse by her wild man-child of a son. Several tales use Staten Island’s landfill effectively, including Ashley Dawson’s “Fresh Kills,” in which a pair of 17-year-olds investigate some suspicious dumping, and Ted Anthony’s “A User’s Guide to Keeping Your Kills Fresh,” in which the brother of an inept contract killer has to bail him out after the killer encounters a multitude of problems getting rid of his victims. Bruce DeSilva’s frightening “Abating a Nuisance” depicts 1858 Staten Island, then home to quarantined people exposed to yellow fever, typhus, or cholera, until residents take matters into their own hands. In Michael Penncavage’s unsettling “Mistakes,” a sober partygoer finds himself trapped by an enraged bruiser in a Staten Island ferry men’s room. Other standouts are PW reviews director Louisa Ermelino’s “Sister-in-Law” and Shay Youngblood’s “Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground.” (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

"Smith’s introduction is a revelation. She knows the Island I have in my head. It was like finding a literary sibling, separated since birth."

Washington Independent

"Each story in this enjoyable collection has its own charms, if the words ‘enjoyable’ or ‘charms’ can be used with these dark tales, and each can stand-alone. However, if, like me, you had always looked at Staten Island as banal and benign, by the book’s end your ideas will be forever changed."

ReviewingTheEvidence.com