Ken’s Pick (Guest Reviewer)
February 2023
The Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee Mystery Novels
Tony Hillerman
1970- 2006
Harper Collins
Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee are two fictional Navajo Tribal policeman whose crime fighting adventures can be followed in an 18-volume series crafted by superb writer Tony Hillerman. The series starts with The Blessing Way and concludes with The Shape Shifter, written 2 years prior to his death in 2008. These contemporary detectives created by Hillerman are reminiscent of the masterminds of Agatha Christie and Conan Doyle.
Hillerman was born and raised in Oklahoma and attended school with many native children. This formed a deep and respectful admiration for the Navajo culture and way of life. Hillerman began writing the novels while teaching journalism at the University of New Mexico in 1970. His experience as a journalist is evident in the manner in which the stories unfold. Often, they begin with a murder and then proceed through the unraveling of bits and pieces of evidence discovered by the actions of the brilliant Leaphorn and Chee. This narrative structure at first glance may seem formulaic. However, each novel is filled to the final pages with geological and geographical atmosphere, human relationships of all sorts, and personal failures and triumphs all seen through the vital modern Navajo culture of the American southwest.
I highly recommend this series to be read in the order of the original publication for clarity of the characters and development of their unique relationship. I found this series of novels to be some of the most enjoyable works of fiction I’ve had the pleasure to read in many years. Note: For fans of this series, his daughter Anne Hillerman has written 7 more Leaphorn and Chee mystery novels. Her newest will be published in 2023!