Francis M. Nevins

“Long before the Theater of the Absurd, Woolrich discovered that an incomprehensible universe is best reflected in an incomprehensible story. ("Introduction")”

— Francis M. Nevins

“His most characteristic detective stories end with the realization that no rational account of events is possible, and his suspense stories tend…

— Francis M. Nevins

“But suspense presupposes uncertainty. No matter how nightmarish the situation, real suspense is impossible when we know in advance that the protagonist…

— Francis M. Nevins

“The hallmarks of the noir style are fear, guilt and loneliness, breakdown and despair, sexual obsession and social corruption, a sense that…

— Francis M. Nevins

“All we can do about this nightmare we live in is to create, if we are very lucky, a few islands of…

— Francis M. Nevins

“Woolrich had a genius for creating types of story perfectly consonant with his world: the noir cop story, the clock race story,…

— Francis M. Nevins

“The viewpoint character in each story is usually someone trapped in a living nightmare, but this doesn't guarantee that we and the…

— Francis M. Nevins

“In Woolrich's crime fiction there is a gradual development from pulp to noir. The earlier a story, the more likely it stresses…

— Francis M. Nevins