Spenser, the detective with no first name, has provided endless hours of pleasure to readers of Robert B. Parker’s mystery novels. The adult Spenser is a private detective working out of Boston, Massachusetts. He is committed to only one woman, Susan Silverman, a Harvard trained psychologist with a Ph.D. His best friend is a dark and gritty character called Hawk, who acts as sidekick/partner with Spenser in many of his cases.
Before becoming a detective he was born in Wyoming, attended Holy Cross in Boston on a football scholarship, spent time as a police officer, and did some professional boxing. Somewhere along the line, he also managed to find time to become a better than average cook.
The Retconning Of Spenser
Parker has retconned (retroactive continuity) the Spenser back stories many times over the years. Most, but not all, of the changes were unexplained by the author. Some modifications, such as the characters age and military experience, were made to slow the aging process of the character.
- Godwulf Manuscript (1973) Spenser was 37 years old. In the last novel, Sixkill (2011), Spenser is 49. He aged a mere 12 years over the course of 36 years.
- Initially, Spenser was a Korean War vet. Later, references were made to Spenser’s military experience simply as “the war,” with no distinction as to which war.
- In one novel he remembers advice given to him by his mother, yet he has regularly claimed his mother died in childbirth.
Robert Parker never commented on these inconsistencies. Fans of Spenser may have wondered about these things also but the purity of the character and his rich personality always bring fans back.
This retconning is not new. Comic book characters have regularly reinvented themselves over the years or just live forever without aging. Superman, Lois Lane, and Batman were all introduced in the late 1930s and never seem to age. Television uses the term reimagining when it brings back an old series, the most recent being Hawaii-50. The character of Kono changed from a 300 plus pound Sumo wrestler type to a petite twenty something female rookie cop/surfer.
Chasing The Bear: Spenser At The Age Of Fourteen
Perhaps Parker hoped to clear up some of the inconsistencies with Chasing the Bear (2009). This book takes us on a journey back to the teenage years of Spenser. More specifically Spenser’s fourteenth year is the focus.
The story starts with the adult Spenser and Susan Silverman in the Boston Public Gardens. Susan tells Spenser she knows him so well yet doesn’t know much about his life before they met. This leads to a series of flashbacks to vignettes about his formative years. Between each vignette the reader returns to the Gardens for some Susan Silverman analysis which readily segues into another vignette.
The reader learns Spenser was raised by his father and two uncles (his mother’s brothers), who taught him how to box from an early age. Each vignette shows one more building block in the Spenser adult character as he develops his code of honor.
- Defend and protect family.
- Do what’s right.
- Never back down from a bully.
- Respect for women.
- The difference between “what’s right” and “what’s law.”
It is not known whether Parker intended to make this a new spinoff series or if it was just a one-time experiment. Sadly, Robert Parker died in 2010 without an answer to this question.
Finding The Right Audience For Chasing The Bear
The book can be an enjoyable read for those familiar with the adult Spenser. Younger audiences may be in the dark about the adult Spenser but should find a strong character, worthy of their admiration and respect. Younger readers may have some difficulty dealing with the adult characters and relationship of Spenser and Susan.
While displaying the development of the child-to-man Spenser, adults might find the stories a bit too tame and juvenile in comparison to the adult Spenser novels. Parker doesn’t try to make Spenser as indestructible and tough as the adult and that’s exactly the way it should be. Spenser is not always certain of what is right and wrong. He falls back on family, his father and two uncles, for advice. Even the advice he receives demonstrates components that will contribute to the man who basically grows from these experiences.
Overall Chasing the Bear is an entertaining, quick (169 pages) read. Parker’s signature quick, snappy dialog (he said, she said), moves the book along at a good pace. Spenser fans will not be disappointed.
Join the Conversation