Murder at the ABA (1976) is a mystery novel by Isaac Asimov, following the adventures of a writer and amateur detective named Darius Just (whom Asimov modeled on his friend Harlan Ellison). While attending a convention of the American Booksellers Association, Just discovers the dead body of a friend and protégé. Convinced that the death was due to murder, but unable to convince law enforcement, Just decides to investigate on his own. 1976 is a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... Detective fiction is a branch of crime fiction that centres upon the investigation of a crime, usually murder, by a detective, either professional or amateur. ... Isaac Asimov Isaac Asimov (c. ... Harlan Jay Ellison (born May 27, 1934, Painesville, Ohio) is a prolific writer of short stories, novellas, essays and criticism. ... The American Booksellers Association is a non-profit industry association founded in 1900 that promotes independent bookstores. ... Murder is both a legal and a moral term, that are not always coincident. ...

Origins

Asimov recounts the unusual history behind Murder at the ABA in his second autobiographical volume, In Joy Still Felt (1980). According to Asimov, a book named Murder at Frankfurt had been written, placing a fictional mystery story at the Frankfurt Book Fair. His Doubleday editor, Larry Ashmead, proposed that Asimov write a similar book about the American Booksellers Convention. 1980 is a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... Frankfurt am Main [ˈfraŋkfʊrt] is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth largest city of Germany. ... Doubleday is one of the largest book publishing companies in the world. ...

Asimov attended the ABA convention in New York City and absorbed enough "local color" to invent the setting, characters and "gimmick" of his mystery story. Ashmead then informed him that they needed the book in time for the next year's convention—which meant that Asimov had only two months in which to write it. Consequently, the novel is full of odd constructions, such as footnotes where the narrator and a character debate the narrator's storytelling style, which Asimov included knowing full well that critics would likely pan them. He needed the fun, he observed later, to keep himself working. Midtown Manhattan, looking north from the Empire State Building, 2005 New York City (officially named the City of New York) is the most populous city in the state of New York and the entire United States. ...

Characters

Almost all of the speaking parts in Murder at the ABA belong to fictitious persons. As part of the novel's ambiance, Asimov included several of the individuals who in fact attended the New York convention. Only one of them, Walter Sullivan of the New York Times, has any spoken dialogue. Sullivan only speaks when he is introduced to Darius Just; he says "Oh, yes" in such a convincing manner that Just is almost fooled into believing Sullivan has heard of him. The New York Times is an internationally known daily newspaper published in New York City and distributed in the United States and many other nations worldwide. ...

Fictional

• Darius Just - narrator, a writer modeled on Harlan Ellison
• Giles Devore - Just's protégé, author of Crossover and Evergone
• Sarah Voskovek - public relations manager at the hotel where the convention occurs
• Thomas and Theresa Valier - executives of Prism Press, Just and Devore's publisher
• Roseann Bronstein - bookseller
• Eunice Devore - lawyer, Giles Devore's wife
• Henrietta Corvass - interview secretary for the ABA
• Anthony Marsogliani - Chief of Hotel Security
• Michael P. Strong - Hotel Security employee
• Shirley Jennifer - writer of romance novels and close friend of Darius Just
• Nellie Griswold - employee of Hercules Press

Harlan Jay Ellison (born May 27, 1934, Painesville, Ohio) is a prolific writer of short stories, novellas, essays and criticism. ... A romance novel is a novel from the genre currently known as romance. ...

Cameos of real individuals

• Isaac Asimov - eccentric and prolific writer who attends the convention gathering "local color" for a mystery
• Charles Berlitz - mystic, participant on a panel
• Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. - actor
• Uri Geller - purported telekinetic, participant on a panel
• Anita Loos - actress
• Joe Namath's mother
• Cathleen Nesbit - actress
• Carl Sagan - astronomer, participant on a panel
• Walter Sullivan - moderator of a panel discussion

Charles Frambach Berlitz (November 20, 1914, New York City - December 18, 2003) was an author known for his books about anomalous phenomena. ... Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. ... Uri Geller Uri Geller (born December 20, 1946 in Tel Aviv, Israel) is a famous but controversial alleged psychic and television personality. ... Anita Loos (April 26, 1889–August 18, 1981) was an acclaimed American screenwriter, playwright and author. ... Joseph William Namath (born May 31, 1943) was an American football quarterback for the American Football Leagues New York Jets in the 1960s. ... A respected astronomer and dogged critic of pseudoscience, Carl Sagan is best known for his enthusiastic efforts at popularizing science. ...

References and links

• Asimov, Isaac. Murder at the ABA (Doubleday: 1976). ISBN 0-38511-305-6.
• Jenkins, John. Spoiler-Laden Guide, book 172 (http://homepage.mac.com/jhjenkins/Asimov/Books/Book172.html).
• Review (http://www.asimovians.com/bookreviews.php?op=showcontent&id=41) at Asimovians.com.