Rabbi Small

“The Rabbi Small Mysteries” are a series of novels by Harry Kemelman, who was an American thriller and mystery author and an English professor. He is best known as the author and creator of “Rabbi David Small,” one of the most famous religious sleuths in the genre. The series was adapted into TV series called “Lanigan’s Rabbi” in 1976. Kemelman began writing when he published some of his short stories on Ellery Queen. It was at this time that he penned the classic short fiction series “The Nine Mile Walk” that featured Nicky Welt, the New England university professor. Kemelman was born to Russian immigrant parents and for the early years of his life, he lived in Boston. Since he always wanted to become an author, he went to Boston University and studied English literature. However, authorship did not come easily as he had to earn a living teaching English and literature in local Boston schools for several years. In 1936, he got married and when World War II broke out, he became chief wage administrator. In 1963, he was made an English professor at Franklin Technical Institute and his experiences would late inform his “Nicky Welt” short fiction.