CONTACT US

MONKOLOGY by Gary Phillips: Thirteen Stories from the World of Private Eye Ivan Monk

Monkology exists in three states: 700 Brillianta cloth-bound copies, signed by the author, $30; 300 (well, okay, actually 282, since I left one box sitting on my living room floor and it didn't get to the signing where all the individuals involved in the CD's production were gathered together) Brillianta cloth-bound copies, WITH a CD, signed by 10 of the 13 individuals involved in the production of the CD + book—SOLD OUT!—$50; 104 quarter-morocco with hand-made-paper-covered-boards copies, signed and lettered ("A" through "ZZZZ") by the author, with the CD included in a map-pocket affixed to the rear board of the book, $150. (14 copies remain unsold as of 12/6/04).

MONKOLOGY features thirteen tough tales about Los Angeles private investigator Ivan Monk, including an original novelette, The King Alfred Plan, written expressly for the collection.In these stories you'll encounter starry-eyed sinners, street corner revolutionaries, Hollywood hustlers, over-heated politicians, rightwing assholes, a ghost or two, cavorting cops, architects with major issues, flying saucers, and a little old lady with a popgun, all out to make their mark in the city of dreams and despair. Reviews in the major book trade and library media have been superb, and here they are:

Booklist, November 15, 2004 issue, reviewed by Bill Ott, Publisher of Booklist:

"That Phillips' four Ivan Monk novels have never gained the audience they deserve remains one of the great injustices in mystery publishing. Monk's sense of absurdity and his perfectly emulsified blend of toughness and tenderness make him one of crime fiction's most appealing heroes—not simply one of the most appealing African American heroes, as he is too often pigeonholed. The tone in these 13 stories (12 starring Monk) is overall a bit lighter than in the novels, but Phillips' eye for the political, social, and human realities of life in L.A.'s inner city remains as sharp as ever. The best stories in the collection show new sides of the writer: "53 Buick" faultlessly mixes crime and fantasy, and "Through the Fog, Softly" (starring Monk's father and set during the Korean War) introduces a hint of horror. A fine collection from a tireless small publisher who does a superb job of keeping overlooked but top-notch hard-boiled writers in print."

Publisher's Weekly, August 2, 2004 issue (PW reviews are anonymous):

"Firmly rooted in the hard-boiled tradition, these 13 stories from Phillips (Bangers, etc.) showcase the cool exhuberance of black Los Angeles PI Ivan Monk, whose family connections tend to prod him into taking cases no one in his right mind would investigate. Nostalgia is a recurrent theme, as in "Throught the Fog, Softly," which introduces Monk's father, Josiah Monk, as a soldier in Korea, and in Monk's love of 1950s and '60s cars. Some tales verge on fantasy, such as "The King Alfred Plan," which imagines a scheme to round up blacks into concentration camps. A pseudo-screenplay, "Bring Me the Head of Osama Bin-Laden," is the weakest effort in an otherwise strong collection. At his best, Monk displays something of the cockiness of Robert Parker's Spenser and the racial awareness of Walter Mosley's Easy Rawlins. Monk has a toughness all his own, however, and a noir sensibility shines brightly in stories like "Low-ball" and "The Raiders."

Monkology is truly a wonderful collection of fast-moving, black-humored tales covering the entire spectrum of weirdnesses a "real" modern-day PI who happens to be black might, and frankly, surely would, run into while living in the surreal world of early 21st century Los Angeles. It's a great read, and shouldn't be missed by anybody who enjoys PI fiction, black humor in many forms, and just generally very outré stories. Given the state of New York publishing, Monkology will probably never be published in paperback, more's the pity, so this is your chance to buy a beautifully-produced book the contents of which mirror and even surpass its presentation.

—Dennis McMillan, Publisher

Site Design and Construction by:
Millikin Communications