"Nobody is truly from San Diego. Everyone came from somewhere else."
Despite whether this statement is true or false it is one observation about a setting that works perfectly for noir style fiction.
The statement is true for myself, moving to the city for college, to a location that couldn't get any closer to what San Diego is known for, it's beautiful beaches, high craggy cliffs, and sun. The last description is debatable; however, when you live that close to the ocean.Point Loma Nazarene University is situated on Catalina street just north of where the point ends, culminating in a cemetery, Cabrilo National Monument, and the Point Loma Lighthouse. A majority of the houses are old but well-kept and worth millions. Situated on either side of Catalina are two very seedy locations in the city. Ocean Beach, a skanky counter culture-ified beach town, where the transients pan handle and Rosecrans street lined with Nudie Bars as my mom likes to call them. It was a bit of a culture difference moving from one of the newest suburbs of South Orange County, voted the safest city in the U.S. every year, but San Diego still seemed like a very welcoming big city, and I've never feared it.
"San Diego Noir" is an anthology of short stories written by authors who live or are from San Diego, and each story explores a dark or hard-boiled crime story set within the city/county. It's a little disconcerting knowing exactly where some of the stories take place, especially if you frequent the spots on a regular basis.
My initial gut response is I haven't turned pages that quickly in a long time. The last story was so bad I was counting pages though, but that is only the last 10 pages or so. Sadly it's the last story, and the saying doesn't go "Save the best for last" for nothing. I will recap it for you and these few words should make you feel embarrassed for the author, ex PR working half-human fairies turned CSI personnel in the alleys of the Gaslamp District.
The stories provide variety to the read, which is perfect for a summer book when you don't always have as long of an attention span as the sun is calling you to come out and play. I was lucky to have to read the book for work. You can click on the link at the top of post to hear the author interview segment I produced for KPBS.
When describing one of the latest installments in the "Noir" series, which began with "Brooklyn Noir" and grew from there, many say they don't see San Diego as a place with an underbelly because it's so sunny and happy all the time. I disagree.
The italicized statement from above about that nobody is from San Diego makes it a great place for crime to happen because people aren't as inclined to know their neighbors. The transient nature of California, and especially port cities bring in crime and other illegal paraphernalia as it's easy to escape without anyone really noticing.
Another reason is the topography. Hilly areas that are characteristic of Southern California coastal areas make it so houses can be easily obstructed from other neighbors. And let's not even get started with the canyons that separate all sorts of neighborhoods just north of Downtown. In one story a dead body is disposed of in one of the canyons right by my house under a bridge I like to cross on a routine basis.
This is a pick for anyone's summer reading.
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