Authors know that sometimes novels take on a life of their own during the writing. Sometimes a secondary character is so full of verve and life that they wind up taking center stage, and the writer doesn't know where it comes from, because it's magical and unbidden, but there the character is, and the spotlight shifts to where the action is.

So it was with mystery novelist Earl Derr Biggers, who paid a lot of attention to Honolulu during a sojourn here and knocked out a murder mystery, “;House Without a Key,”; that is chockablock with keen observations about Hawaii in the early '20s.

And there's a minor character, Honolulu Police detective Charlie Chan, who grows to dominate the book, which became a best-seller. Biggers immediately knocked out a sequel, “;The Chinese Parrot,”; which made Chan a central character, and this was such a hit that it became a film.

Biggers, knowing now that Charlie Chan was buttering his bread, wrote four more novels featuring the rotund policeman who lived on Punchbowl's slopes and spoke in aphorisms. Biggers died in the early '30s, about when Charlie Chan films became a cottage industry, even spawning also-ran competition like Mr. Moto. Although Detective Chan himself was generally played by Caucasians, his extended family gave work to a whole generation of struggling Asian actors.

    The original Biggers' novels are coming back into print, courtesy publishers Academy Chicago and copyright owners 4Kids Entertainment, who also represent, among other things, the Royal Air Force. The first two, “;The House Without a Key”; and “;The Chinese Parrot,”; are out now. “;Behind That Curtain”; and “;The Black Camel”; will be published in May, and “;Charlie Chan Carries On”; and “;Keeper of the Keys”; will be release in the fall.

“;The Chan novels by Biggers have lasting appeal because they are such compelling reading. Biggers was a great writer,”; said Eric Miller, vice president of Academy Chicago. “;Whether he was writing about Punchbowl Hill in Honolulu or about San Francisco where he once lived, Biggers was the consummate stylist. His books have stood the test of time very well. In fact, in some ways they were ahead of their time.”;

    Hawaii pop-culture guru DeSoto Brown said Charlie, as an Asian character, was groundbreaking in American culture at a time—the 1920s into the '40s. Asian immigration was restricted, and Asian characters in fiction were usually sinister and mysterious. “;Charlie Chan, conversely, was not only the good guy, but was in fact actually better at crime-solving than the haole characters. In the movies, he is always treated with respect for his intelligence and talents.”;

This is certainly the year for the return of Charlie Chan. Biggers will be “;Ghost of Honor”; at the “;Left Coast Crime”; annual mystery fans convention, to be held in Hawaii this year, March 7 to 12 at the Marriott Waikoloa Resort.

Here's another point of relativity, courtesy Brown:

“;Both Charlie Chan and Barack Obama have a similar sort of background—both originated in 'exotic' Hawaii, but they also went on to greater fame in the larger outside world. Their actions and abilities are rooted in their innate abilities, and, they move beyond what others of their respective races had previously been able to accomplish.”;

Case closed.

Original novels put Chan back in perspective

The books that launched Charlie Chan are pretty much forgotten today, hidden behind the many movies and comics and TV appearances by the Chinese detective, whose presence even today raised raises a suspicion of subliminal racism. Academy Chicago's relaunch of the original series puts Chan back into his proper perspective, that of a literary sleuth acting within a well-plotted page-turner.

Reading these books is a definite pleasure. Author Biggers is a smooth strategist, clever plotter and keen observer, and the novels give the same escapist tingle as the best of Agatha Christie. No less than Rex Stout—creator of the Nero Wolfe series—declared that Charlie Chan was one of the best fictional detectives ever, right up there with Sherlock Holmes.

“;The House Without a Key”; focuses on the travails of young John Quincy Winterslip, a stuffy Boston-Brahmin investments broker who is paying a visit to the family black sheep, a rich swindler who lives in a mansion on Waikiki Beach—found dead the day John Quincy arrives.

Honolulu at the time is described most vividly by Biggers, who has a discerning eye for the polyglot social structure of the islands, including a detective of Asian origin in a position of authority and respect. This was written at the height of “;yellow peril”; hysteria, mind you.

In “;The Chinese Parrot,”; Chan is taken out of familiar tropical surroundings and plopped into the California desert, and still manages to outwit incompetent local police.

In both books the central character is a young, feckless chap who manages to grow up over the course of the investigation, as well as fall under the sway of a charming young lady. But Chan is the polarizing figure, the catalyst and clearly the smartest guy in the room.

Is Chan a racist stereotype? Maybe. But he'll track down whoever killed you and solve the case.