Post-9/11 books

In the comments section to a post below, writer Patti Abbott writes:

I've been reading Second Hand by Micahel Zadoorian, a book written around 2000 and set in Detroit. I wonder if a case can be make that novels written pre-9/11 have a completely different feel to them. This is leisurely and the angst in it manageable rather than apocalyptic. Do you see a difference?

I've been thinking about it, and I can't say that I've seen any major differences between the books I've read that were written before and after 9/11. Obviously there are some subject matter differences (in some books, at least), but in terms of themes, style, etc., I can't point to anything.

I think the differences between individual authors and books are so great that it's difficult to generalize much in terms of how books overall might have changed. I'm sure that some authors have changed, or some books have changed, but I haven't seen any widespread differences in the genre as a whole.

It's an interesting subject to think about, though.

Comments

[Michael Berry]

One thing I've noticed is how much more attention has to be paid to the minutia of "security." Characters no longer hop on planes willy-nilly, create new identities with an old obituary or easily stock up on explosives. All those details have to be explicitly addressed now. It's especially noticeable in Richard Stark's most recent Parker novels.

[patti abbott]

It maybe be that it is more prevalent and noticeable in literary fiction. I think there the writers now feel obligated to see the world more darkly post 9/11. Crime fiction has always seen the world that way and rightly so.