A Brief History of African-American Mysteries.

Now is a great time for readers of African-American mysteries and thrillers: Their variety is greater now than it has been in any other time in history, and bookstores are increasing their inventories. Writers such as Walter Mosley, Valerie Wilson Wesley and Barbara Neely have become well-known names.

Some believe mainstream publishers tapping into the African/ American market is the major factor in this surge in popularity. Others claim it's because the genres are new to African-American readers and writers, and still others speculate that it's because mystery writers know their craft and their readers. Whatever the reason, the good news is that African-American mysteries are being published and read in record numbers.

Thrillers and mysteries are often confusingly lumped into one genre by the uninitiated. They are, in fact, two separate types of fiction. A good mystery is a challenging who-done-it. From a riveting thriller, expect edge-of-the-seat suspense and action, And readers are generally tipped-off early who or what the antagonist is. This is not the case in a mystery: The purpose is to find out who committed the crime. In a thriller, it's not who done it, as much as when it will be done, whom will it be done to next and how it will be done. Beings with supernatural powers--ghosts, demons and aliens--are often the antagonists in thrillers. In mysteries, the person who done it is not always the antagonist, but who-done-it is also rarely other than human.

In the anthology Spooks, Spies, and Private Eyes, editor Paula L. Woods points out that African-American thrillers and mysteries are not a recent phenomenon. In the early twentieth century, Rudolph Fisher and Pauline E. Hopkins put their stamp on the mystery genre. Rudolph Fisher's The Conjure Man Dies (1932) was the first mystery novel set in an African-American community. And Fisher's work was predated by two early mystery short stories by Pauline Hopkins, "The Mystery Within Us" (1900) and "Talma Gordon."

Today's readers relate to familiar locales and common community issues in popular African-American mysteries. Valerie Wilson Wesley writes about Newark, New Jersey and has also taken us to Jamaica, west Indies. Barbara Neely writes of North Carolina or places her stories in or near Boston. And Walter Mosley writes about Los Angeles. These writers are in-tune with their communities, covering issues from single parenting to inferior grocery stores. Race relations, social economic pressures, political injustice, judicial and police prejudice are apparent in their work.

As a reader, I hope emerging African-American mystery writers continue in this responsible fashion. As a writer, I pay homage to tradition and I respect the craft. It is an exciting time to be a reader or a writer of mysteries and detective stories.

Tony Lindsay is the author of One Dead Preacher (see review, page 21) and the upcoming Prayer of Prey.