Alex James's Blog: AlexJamesNovels Blog - Posts Tagged "arthur-conan-doyle"

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8...

For those of you who think you don’t need to read the book because you know of the story or you’ve watched the film, think again! The Hound of the Baskervilles is not just about a vicious horror hound. It’s a Sherlock Holmes story, and that means fast-paced dialogue, criminal mystery, and mental deduction to be resolved through intellectual reasoning from seemingly far-fetched clues.

In The Hound of the Baskervilles, we’re introduced to the myth of the hound, how it has haunted the Baskerville family leading to the death of the late Sir Charles Baskerville in an alley outside the stately home. I confess, parts of the story had a creepy effect on me, which added to the general severe atmosphere: alleys, and paintings, and ponies sinking into bogs. I shudder.

If I have one criticism, it’s that there weren’t enough convincing suspects and in retrospect it was obvious who was culpable. Despite that, before reaching this conclusion the author does take us round the houses, taking our attention away when necessary only to bring it back at the crucial time. And the criminal was sinister and intelligent … almost a match for Sherlock Holmes and Watson.

I was surprised how much I enjoyed the book. A tired old title is not necessarily a tired old read. It was a quick read, yet stimulating, and there was never a dull moment. I’d like to read more of Arthur Conan Doyle’s stories.

‘Jurassic Park’?

Not the exact same as ‘Jurassic Park’ by any means! There is much adventuring in The Lost World observed by Watson-esque ‘Malone’, who is a journalist waiting to do something heroic for his romantic interest Gladys. As you can expect of a classic written in the early 20th century, there is much description, delivered with the investigative interest you’d see in Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes stories.

Who is Professor Challenger?

The Lost World (TLW) is a unique story with imposing, yet culturally outdated, characters you can’t help but be fascinated by, in particular the bombastic overbearing Professor Challenger who is violent to journalists he despises. Why? Challenger claims to have seen prehistoric life in South America and nobody believes him. He’s at the mercy of the press, and the scientific establishment thinks he’s a loon.

There is a more tolerant side to Challenger, though his intelligence and inventiveness don’t redeem him. He sees most people and races as inferior due to their non-European education and upbringing, I suppose, which would not be acceptable now. Challenger is a fascinating character simply because we observe his crude ways and sense of humour, and his expedition to prove his reputation is the reason for the story. He’s admonished by his wife for his violence, who he sits on a high table from which she can’t get off, for punishment, which I found odd and confusing. I only realised after reading there weren’t any important female characters on the expedition itself.

Do we see actual dinosaurs?

Yes, I confirm there are dinosaurs. It’s not the crazy dinosaur extravaganza or the human hunt you’d expect, but we certainly get a vision of what The Lost World is and how wondrous it is. The ending is the best part of the story, and you have to go through the entire adventure to truly appreciate the moment. The whole story was fascinating, and the ending made it sublime. Definitely worth reading!

‘If my future were black, it was better surely to face it like a man than attempt to brighten it by mere will-o’-the-wisps of the imagination.’

‘When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.’

The Sign of Four is a Sherlock Holmes story with a cursed murder theme. We’re introduced to the familiar reasoning of our favourite detective before a case finally lands on him to alleviate his boredom. The case itself is about a set of pearls delivered to Lady Morstan every year following the mysterious disappearance of her father.

There are elements of Watson’s personal life that intrude on the plot, with his family, hopes, and dreams. Watson is seen as warm while Holmes, cold.

Praise

As with most Sherlock Holmes stories there are the fascinating, outlandish series of events summed up perfectly logically at the end, in this case where a monologue explains all, where I was engrossed in learning the backstory to the murders, based in several different circumstances and involving all sorts of things.

Criticism

By modern standards, the book, as with many 19th century stories, is not culturally appropriate or doesn’t hold back from stating opinions that would likely be censored nowadays. Sometimes I didn’t mind this – there was no way to get around it short of boring the reader – while at other times I felt it was too typical of the attitudes at the time.

Overall

Worth reading? Yes. Was it as good as The Hound of the Baskervilles? I’m not certain whether this was true.