8 h 44 minAudiobook6 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
In Tinkletown, every small mystery deserves a great detective—and Anderson Crow is certain he is that man.
Anderson Crow wears his marshal’s badge with pride. In the dusty streets of Tinkletown, he guards both his neighbors and his good name. A missing object, odd behavior, or a stranger’s arrival is enough to stir his detective instincts. Crow sees a great case where others might see an ordinary village puzzle.
George Barr McCutcheon surrounds his confident lawman with shopkeepers, loafers, rivalries, and gossip that travels from porch to porch. Everyone knows everyone, and a crime becomes the biggest news of the season. The pleasure lies less in serious detection than in watching Crow’s grand opinion of himself meet the daily life of a small Midwestern town.
What you’ll discover
- A marshal with confidence Meet a proud protector whose belief in his own brilliance supplies the comedy.
- Small puzzles loom large Watch everyday mysteries become important cases in the eyes of an eager lawman.
- Neighbors worth knowing Enjoy a town where gossip, rivalries, shopkeepers, and loafers matter as much as detection.
- Humor with a light touch Find gentle laughs in the gap between Crow’s confidence and his actual cleverness.
- Life beyond the badge Step into dusty streets where a mystery gives the whole town something to discuss.
Who will love it
Readers who love gentle small-town comedy, village eccentrics, wartime home-front humor and detectives who deduce wildly. It suits anyone who enjoys a good tall tale told with a straight face.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A fire, a jail break and a chase
- Wedding fever meets a made-up law
- Two polite strangers and a mountain of gold
- Minnie Stitzenberg runs against the marshal
- Vicious Lucius and his terrible reputation
- The veiled lady and the shadow
- The Loop divorce and the hunt for a guilty man
- A missing dog and a trained elephant
- Cider, secrets and how the stories are told
Who’s who
- Anderson CrowThe vain, long whiskered marshal of Tinkletown, who wears seven badges and wants to be known as a great detective.
- Eva CrowHis practical wife, who is elected marshal and takes charge when he is left behind.
- Harry SquiresThe Banner's editor and reporter, who teases Crow and secretly admires him.
- Alf ReeslingThe town drunk who swears he has not touched a drop in decades and who tags along as Crow's deputy.
- Newt SprattA talkative townsman who longs to be first with every piece of news.
- Uncle Dad SimmsThe town's oldest and deafest resident, who mishears everything and enjoys it.
- Minnie StitzenbergA strong willed woman who runs against Crow for marshal after he arrests her.
- Lucius FryA small, henpecked husband who is suddenly feared as the town's most violent man.
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- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 8 h 44 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 6 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
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Anderson Crow, detective
by George Barr McCutcheon · 1920
A fire, a jail break and a bank robbery hit Tinkletown in one night, and Anderson Crow is late to all of them.
Medium level5–10 hours to read25 languages
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In short
What happens when the town marshal of a sleepy New York village is late to a fire, a jail break and a bank robbery, all on the same night? George Barr McCutcheon's Anderson Crow, Detective is a set of linked comic tales about Marshal Crow of Tinkletown, a man who solves every case in his own mind.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A fire, a jail break and a chase
The book opens on a night in May 1918. The grain elevator of old man Smock is burning, and Anderson Crow arrives late, shouting orders through a trumpet. The volunteer firemen soon run for safety, with their chief right behind them.
Then two small boys bring bigger news. Two tramps jailed the day before have been freed by other men, and men have climbed into the new bank. The crowd leaves the fire for the bank, and Crow later gathers a posse in commandeered cars. Crow remembers his watch and wallet first, and he is left standing in the road in a red undershirt.
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What is Anderson Crow, Detective about?
It is a set of linked comic tales about Marshal Anderson Crow of Tinkletown, New York. Crow tackles fires, robberies, a mystery tenant and a divorce scandal, always sure of his genius and usually rescued by his wife or friends.
Who is Harry Squires in the book?
Harry Squires is the editor and city reporter of the Tinkletown Banner. He teases Crow in print, nicknames him Hawkshaw, and plays practical jokes, but he is fond of the old marshal and often protects his reputation.
When is Anderson Crow, Detective set?
The tales are set around 1917 to 1919, during the First World War and the arrival of Prohibition. The stories use real wartime worries such as spies, the draft and women's suffrage.
The author
George Barr McCutcheon
1866–1928 · American novelist
George Barr McCutcheon was an American novelist born in Tippecanoe County, Indiana, in 1866. He worked as a newspaper reporter in Lafayette, Indiana. His novels include Graustark, published in 1901, and Brewster’s Millions, published in 1902 under the name Richard Greaves. He died in New York City in 1928.
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