The Laughing Policeman Author:Maj Sjowall, Per Wahloo The fourth book in the authors' series featuring briliant, melancholy Stockholm detective Martin Beck, The Laughing Policeman was first published in Sweden in 1968 to excellent reviews. When it was translated into English and more than a dozen other languages a few years later, international critics lauded it for its crisp, spare writing, attent... more »ion to detail, realistic characters, and gripping plot. The book received the Edgar Allan Poe award for best novel from the Mystery Writers of America in 1971.« less