What do you think?
Rate this book
Beat Not The Bones
Suicide or murder? Newly arrived in Papua, where even the luscious vegetation seems to conspire with the bureaucrats to bewilder her, Stella Warwick is determined to prove her husband did not take his own life. Defying the patronising concern of officials, she ventures deep into the jungle, striding ever closer to the horrifying heart of the mystery
160 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1952
26 people are currently reading
384 people want to read
About the author
Charlotte Jay
28 books11 followersCharlotte Jay was the pseudonym adopted by Australian mystery writer and novelist, Geraldine Halls. One of the best and most singular authors of the suspense era, she wrote only nine crime books, but their unorthodoxy secured her a high place in Mystery Hall of Fame.
Jay was born as Geraldine Mary Jay in Melville in Adelaide, South Australia on December 17, 1919. She attended Girton School (now Pembroke School) and the University of Adelaide, and worked as a shorthand typist in Australia and England, and as a court stenographer in New Guinea, 1942-1950.
She married Albert Halls, an Oriental specialist, who worked with the UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization). Albert Halls has dealt in Oriental antiques in England and Australia. Marrying Albert enabled her to travel to many exotic locations in which she later included in her future books. Only her first novel, The Knife is Feminine, is set in Australia. The other books are set in Pakistan, Japan, Thailand, England, Lebanon, India, Papua New Guinea and the Trobriand Islands.
After a long career in writing Halls died on the 27 October 1996, in her home town of Adelaide.
Her book Beat Not the Bones won the then newly created Edgar Allan Poe Award of the Mystery Writers' Association of America for Best Novel of the Year in 1954.
Jay was born as Geraldine Mary Jay in Melville in Adelaide, South Australia on December 17, 1919. She attended Girton School (now Pembroke School) and the University of Adelaide, and worked as a shorthand typist in Australia and England, and as a court stenographer in New Guinea, 1942-1950.
She married Albert Halls, an Oriental specialist, who worked with the UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization). Albert Halls has dealt in Oriental antiques in England and Australia. Marrying Albert enabled her to travel to many exotic locations in which she later included in her future books. Only her first novel, The Knife is Feminine, is set in Australia. The other books are set in Pakistan, Japan, Thailand, England, Lebanon, India, Papua New Guinea and the Trobriand Islands.
After a long career in writing Halls died on the 27 October 1996, in her home town of Adelaide.
Her book Beat Not the Bones won the then newly created Edgar Allan Poe Award of the Mystery Writers' Association of America for Best Novel of the Year in 1954.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
March 7, 2014
The very first Edgar-award winning book (1952) ... and it's written by a woman! A woman who, I would like to point out, rivals Graham Greene in this novel of psychological suspense. When a young Australian woman's husband commits suicide in New Guinea, she travels there to find out the truth. Stella is certain that he was murdered, but the more she comes under the spell of the tropical heat, expatriate eccentricities and native superstitions, she is not sure what to believe. Jay does an exceptional of capturing the stultifying humidity of the tropics, and her depictions of the patriarchal colonial attitude is horrifying and so so so accurate. As Stella travels deep into the jungle in search of her husband's murderer, she discovers the terrifying results of greed, hubris and misplaced guilt. And she learns that even the best intention can bring on a devastating result. Soho Crime brought this book back into print in 1995 ... if only they would do so again. But you can easily find a copy on abebooks.com. That's where I got mine.
August 24, 2020
“Charlotte Jay” is the pseudonym for Geraldine Halls (nee Geraldine Jay) (1917-1996), a writer born in Adelaide who wrote five novels using this pen-name, one as by G. M. Jay, and eight under her own name between 1951 and 1995. Not a prolific writing career for that length of time but certainly a respectable one.
Her third novel, BEAT NOT THE BONES, won the inaugural Mystery Writers of America Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Novel in 1954, and yet appears not to have raised her to the prominence you might expect from this sort of win. Such, it seems, is the destiny of mid-twentieth century Australian women writers.
Jay graduated from the University of Adelaide in 1941, then worked in Melbourne, Sydney and London before taking on a job as a Supreme Court stenographer in Papua New Guinea in 1948. She lived there for 10 years, during which time she married Albert John Halls who worked for UNESCO. Her stay in PNG heavily influenced the novels she wrote during that period with this novel being fully set in that country.
Stella Warwick has travelled to Marapai (a re-named Port Moresby) in Papua to take up a job as an administrative assistant with the Australian Government authorities, but also to investigate the death of her husband David. His death has been ruled a suicide by the police but Stella is convinced that he would never do such a thing and that a major crime has been covered up. Just prior to his death her husband sent her a letter detailing his interactions with an Australian beachcomber, Alfred Jobe, and disclosing the fact that Jobe had discovered gold ornaments belonging to a tribe of native Papuans in Eola, a village outside the patrolled territory. It's Stella's feeling that this gold discovery might be linked to her husband's death, yet all of his friends discourage her from investigating and actively attempt to mislead her when she persists. It appears that everyone is lying to her or misleading her in some way. The modern reader will see a lot more of this that Stella herself; it is not that she is unintelligent or too believing, it's just that we are now more attuned to the conventions of mystery novels.
After some time she discovers that David died while on a trip to Eola, and that he was accompanied by Philip Washington, who is recovering from a bout of malaria, and Hitolo his native servant. Her persistent attitude results in her organising a return trip to the village with these men where she hopes to finally discover the truth about what happened to her husband. The journey down the river, and then through the jungle towards the village is reminiscent of Conrad's HEART OF DARKNESS: the tension builds with the heat and the humidity as the group dynamics become more fraught and fractious. The two native porters accompanying the group disappear first, this is explained as being due to their fear of the “sorcerers” in the village, followed soon thereafter by Hitolo. As they near the village Washington shows increasing signs of madness and he finally admits his part in the theft of the gold from the villagers. Stella eventually reaches the village of Eola and discovers the reason for her husband's death and the mystery of the village.
Like all good crime or mystery novels the country and location of the action forms a major part of the work and helps to drive the plot. Added to that is the background of the Australian administration of the territory and the inherent racism involved in everything they do and say. Jay stated that she did not set out to write an anti-colonial novel. She didn't need to, the characters do all the work for her.
Crime or mystery novels set in Papua or New Guinea are rare. Novels as good as this are even rarer.
My rating: 4.2/5.0
Her third novel, BEAT NOT THE BONES, won the inaugural Mystery Writers of America Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Novel in 1954, and yet appears not to have raised her to the prominence you might expect from this sort of win. Such, it seems, is the destiny of mid-twentieth century Australian women writers.
Jay graduated from the University of Adelaide in 1941, then worked in Melbourne, Sydney and London before taking on a job as a Supreme Court stenographer in Papua New Guinea in 1948. She lived there for 10 years, during which time she married Albert John Halls who worked for UNESCO. Her stay in PNG heavily influenced the novels she wrote during that period with this novel being fully set in that country.
Stella Warwick has travelled to Marapai (a re-named Port Moresby) in Papua to take up a job as an administrative assistant with the Australian Government authorities, but also to investigate the death of her husband David. His death has been ruled a suicide by the police but Stella is convinced that he would never do such a thing and that a major crime has been covered up. Just prior to his death her husband sent her a letter detailing his interactions with an Australian beachcomber, Alfred Jobe, and disclosing the fact that Jobe had discovered gold ornaments belonging to a tribe of native Papuans in Eola, a village outside the patrolled territory. It's Stella's feeling that this gold discovery might be linked to her husband's death, yet all of his friends discourage her from investigating and actively attempt to mislead her when she persists. It appears that everyone is lying to her or misleading her in some way. The modern reader will see a lot more of this that Stella herself; it is not that she is unintelligent or too believing, it's just that we are now more attuned to the conventions of mystery novels.
After some time she discovers that David died while on a trip to Eola, and that he was accompanied by Philip Washington, who is recovering from a bout of malaria, and Hitolo his native servant. Her persistent attitude results in her organising a return trip to the village with these men where she hopes to finally discover the truth about what happened to her husband. The journey down the river, and then through the jungle towards the village is reminiscent of Conrad's HEART OF DARKNESS: the tension builds with the heat and the humidity as the group dynamics become more fraught and fractious. The two native porters accompanying the group disappear first, this is explained as being due to their fear of the “sorcerers” in the village, followed soon thereafter by Hitolo. As they near the village Washington shows increasing signs of madness and he finally admits his part in the theft of the gold from the villagers. Stella eventually reaches the village of Eola and discovers the reason for her husband's death and the mystery of the village.
Like all good crime or mystery novels the country and location of the action forms a major part of the work and helps to drive the plot. Added to that is the background of the Australian administration of the territory and the inherent racism involved in everything they do and say. Jay stated that she did not set out to write an anti-colonial novel. She didn't need to, the characters do all the work for her.
Crime or mystery novels set in Papua or New Guinea are rare. Novels as good as this are even rarer.
My rating: 4.2/5.0
November 23, 2010
I didn't expect that this book would be exceptionally good. However, it won the first Edgar Award for Best Novel, so I wanted to give it a try. In fact, it turned out to be amazingly good. Imagine "Heart of Darkness" but without all the boring parts (and a mystery). The setting is fascinating, the main character is great, and where the plot goes is unexpected. Also, this is a great commentary on colonialism. It might be kind of hard to find, but it is well worth the effort.
June 8, 2025
Read for a discussion at my library.
The book opens with a truly objectionable character, Jobe, an Australian man who has trekked to a village deep in the jungle of Papua New Guinea to cheat the natives out of gold. He's trying to stake a claim and is running into interference by the colonial authorities. One obstacle is David Warwick, a state-employed anthropologist.
Soon Warwick is dead, and his loyal wife, Stella, heads from Australia to Papua NG to sort out what happened. She's convinced he was murdered though officially it's a suicide.
Written in the early 50s, this story must have been breaking new ground by showing the evils of colonialism, the destruction of cultures, the disregard for "inferior" beings. Stella is charmed by the natural beauty of the place and treats the "boys" who work as servants with respect. The authorities don't want her snooping into the situation, but she heads out for the village that was the scene of the crime, of the theft of gold. That's also where her husband died, but how?
The writing is descriptive enough to have me breaking into a sweat, but the story itself gets confusing. A problem for me was that Stella seemed to read people's deepest thoughts and intentions a bit too keenly. She will hear one of her compatriots say something and will know that the offhandedness of a comment really was a cover-up for fear or anger, when in fact she's just met them. The ending leaves me cold. Stella seems to be staying rather than returning to Australia, and may have some sort of new relationship but it's hardly one that makes my own heart flutter. Jobe, who has not been in the story since the very start of it, and one of the administrators are driving along a cliff with a steep drop. The conversation is very veiled and nothing happens. The End.
???
The book opens with a truly objectionable character, Jobe, an Australian man who has trekked to a village deep in the jungle of Papua New Guinea to cheat the natives out of gold. He's trying to stake a claim and is running into interference by the colonial authorities. One obstacle is David Warwick, a state-employed anthropologist.
Soon Warwick is dead, and his loyal wife, Stella, heads from Australia to Papua NG to sort out what happened. She's convinced he was murdered though officially it's a suicide.
Written in the early 50s, this story must have been breaking new ground by showing the evils of colonialism, the destruction of cultures, the disregard for "inferior" beings. Stella is charmed by the natural beauty of the place and treats the "boys" who work as servants with respect. The authorities don't want her snooping into the situation, but she heads out for the village that was the scene of the crime, of the theft of gold. That's also where her husband died, but how?
The writing is descriptive enough to have me breaking into a sweat, but the story itself gets confusing. A problem for me was that Stella seemed to read people's deepest thoughts and intentions a bit too keenly. She will hear one of her compatriots say something and will know that the offhandedness of a comment really was a cover-up for fear or anger, when in fact she's just met them. The ending leaves me cold. Stella seems to be staying rather than returning to Australia, and may have some sort of new relationship but it's hardly one that makes my own heart flutter. Jobe, who has not been in the story since the very start of it, and one of the administrators are driving along a cliff with a steep drop. The conversation is very veiled and nothing happens. The End.
???
January 14, 2019
This book by Charlotte Jay, written in 1952 won the first ever Edgar Allan Poe Award. I have made it my mission to try to read all the Edgar award books. Mystery and suspense is my favourite genre, and it will be nice to see how the genre has evolved. This book is set in Papua just after the end of WWII. It's probably one of the best books I've ever read that portrays the atrocities and iniquities of colonialism. It also is written in descriptive and beautiful language that distinctly depicts the setting in which the book is written - the thick encroaching jungle, the beautiful flowers and trees and the almost impossibly blue ocean that surrounds it. The book is about Stella Warwick and her quest to find out what actually happened to her husband while he was stationed in Papua. All the bureaucrats are telling her that he committed suicide, but that is not the David Warwick she knows, so she comes to the island to figure it out. Not even she is prepared for the devastating truth that she uncovers. Yes, some of the society norms in the book are dated, especially the role of women played in a colonial province, but Ms. Jay has crafted a complex and frightening suspense thriller that is terrible in its realism. I enjoyed the book, and look forward to continuing my journey with the other books that have won this prestigious award.
March 29, 2019
Beat not the Bones is the first Edgar Award winner for best novel. It has been compared to Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness. It does focus on colonialism and there is a very dark story here, but I didn't feel the same sense of dread as Conrad established.
This book was a good choice for a lengthy airplane journey, I finished it. I didn't enjoy it as much as I had hoped and this is probably due to the ease of distraction on the plane, not the book. Like other readers, I plan to read all the Edgars. Let's see how that goes as I am a way better starter than finisher. Recommended for the completists who want the Edgar journey.
This book was a good choice for a lengthy airplane journey, I finished it. I didn't enjoy it as much as I had hoped and this is probably due to the ease of distraction on the plane, not the book. Like other readers, I plan to read all the Edgars. Let's see how that goes as I am a way better starter than finisher. Recommended for the completists who want the Edgar journey.
December 21, 2025
A claustrophobic
Jungle setting hits the spot.
The truth will come out.
Jungle setting hits the spot.
The truth will come out.
March 29, 2008
The first winner of the Edgar for Best Novel, this book by an Australian writer is set in Papua New Guinea shortly after WWII. Although it has an excellent sense of atmosphere and setting, I found the psychological thriller to be far less than thrilling, and couldn't begin to care about the characters.
As they say in Minnesota..."That was different!" Although the book contains a mystery, which is solved by the end of the book (although with a loose end or two left hanging), it is primarily a psychological and to some extent, an anthropological study. Set in Papua New Guinea
shortly after WWII, when it was evidently an Australian protectorate, the book can shock the contemporary reader with the assumptions and
prejudices the white characters display. The difference in attitudes toward the natives between the best and worst of the white men (for it is they who wield the power) is slight. Only a very few characters seem to be able to think of the Papuans as adult human beings with a worthwhile culture. To the rest, they are either "the white man's burden" or simply the denizens of a country which is to be exploited, and if they are wiped out in the process, so be it.
The protagonist, Stella Warwick, has lived an incredibly sheltered life with an invalid father, but has somehow been courted and married by
David Warwick, an anthropologist who was employed in Papua New Guinea. She did not join him immediately because of her father's illness, and
after a mysterious letter from David causes her father's death by stroke, she learns that David has committed suicide. Or has he? Stella
travels to Papua New Guinea to find out the truth, and her growing independence of thought and action is really the central feature of the
book.
The setting is masterfully done, as is the portrait of a colonial society. I was reminded (dimly, as I read it over 40 years ago) of
Joseph Conrad's HEART OF DARKNESS. But I must confess that this book did not meet my criteria for a mystery novel; for one thing, I found it
rather slow going, and somehow the mystery of David Warwick's death did not seem to be central to the plot. Since the MWA does not list nominees
for this award until 1956, I don't know what the competition may have been.
As they say in Minnesota..."That was different!" Although the book contains a mystery, which is solved by the end of the book (although with a loose end or two left hanging), it is primarily a psychological and to some extent, an anthropological study. Set in Papua New Guinea
shortly after WWII, when it was evidently an Australian protectorate, the book can shock the contemporary reader with the assumptions and
prejudices the white characters display. The difference in attitudes toward the natives between the best and worst of the white men (for it is they who wield the power) is slight. Only a very few characters seem to be able to think of the Papuans as adult human beings with a worthwhile culture. To the rest, they are either "the white man's burden" or simply the denizens of a country which is to be exploited, and if they are wiped out in the process, so be it.
The protagonist, Stella Warwick, has lived an incredibly sheltered life with an invalid father, but has somehow been courted and married by
David Warwick, an anthropologist who was employed in Papua New Guinea. She did not join him immediately because of her father's illness, and
after a mysterious letter from David causes her father's death by stroke, she learns that David has committed suicide. Or has he? Stella
travels to Papua New Guinea to find out the truth, and her growing independence of thought and action is really the central feature of the
book.
The setting is masterfully done, as is the portrait of a colonial society. I was reminded (dimly, as I read it over 40 years ago) of
Joseph Conrad's HEART OF DARKNESS. But I must confess that this book did not meet my criteria for a mystery novel; for one thing, I found it
rather slow going, and somehow the mystery of David Warwick's death did not seem to be central to the plot. Since the MWA does not list nominees
for this award until 1956, I don't know what the competition may have been.
March 28, 2016
Reading all the Edgar Mystery award winners
Very interesting early Edgar winner. Macabre 50's mystery set in Papua New Guinea. Oddly anti-colonial but also racist IMHO relative to modern mores.
Very interesting early Edgar winner. Macabre 50's mystery set in Papua New Guinea. Oddly anti-colonial but also racist IMHO relative to modern mores.
December 28, 2013
Waste Not Your Time
March 21, 2018
For my full review click on the link below:
https://crossexaminingcrime.wordpress...
https://crossexaminingcrime.wordpress...
February 12, 2019
Almost every time Beat Not the Bones is mentioned, it is also noted that author, Charlotte Jay, won the first Edgar Award for mystery novel with this book. I am a little surprised as I did not find it much in the way of a mystery. It had no detective, detecting or clues; it did have madness, an exotic locale and a lot of supposition. The most compelling aspect of the book was its glimpse into other worlds - that of Papua New Guinea and that of the early 1950s. The author lived for a while in the former and the book was a product of the latter. (It won its Edgar in 1954.) The most curious thing I found was its heroine’s unquestioning view of authority, so different from today’s female protagonists who seldom listen to anyone.
Stella Warwick is a young widow who arrives in Papua with the intention of proving her husband’s suicide was actually murder. She had no plan beyond having others ‘help’ her as “she had never had responsibility. She had always been the responsibility of someone else.” (141) She is a woman expecting guidance and direction and starts to doubt herself because an older man in authority “could not be wrong.” (102) Nonetheless, she had complete faith in her ability to know who had information and who was lying. “She did not examine this conviction. She was oddly reluctant to do so.” (148) However, when faced with the jungle itself, Stella finally finds her mettle.
At this time, many people in Papua were still immersed in a stone age civilization. Anthropologists were starting to clamour that native cultures should be respected (an idea Jay seems to foster) but colonial attitudes are deeply entrenched. A native life has less value than a white one. Despite Stella’s allegiance to rules and government, Beat Not the Bones is a condemnation of an authority that is willing to ignore humanity for the sake of greed or pride. “Most of the world’s biggest crimes are committed by men who sit behind desks, keep their hands clean and sleep at night without dreaming.” (213) The character might have been a product of her times but the author was looking forward.
Stella Warwick is a young widow who arrives in Papua with the intention of proving her husband’s suicide was actually murder. She had no plan beyond having others ‘help’ her as “she had never had responsibility. She had always been the responsibility of someone else.” (141) She is a woman expecting guidance and direction and starts to doubt herself because an older man in authority “could not be wrong.” (102) Nonetheless, she had complete faith in her ability to know who had information and who was lying. “She did not examine this conviction. She was oddly reluctant to do so.” (148) However, when faced with the jungle itself, Stella finally finds her mettle.
At this time, many people in Papua were still immersed in a stone age civilization. Anthropologists were starting to clamour that native cultures should be respected (an idea Jay seems to foster) but colonial attitudes are deeply entrenched. A native life has less value than a white one. Despite Stella’s allegiance to rules and government, Beat Not the Bones is a condemnation of an authority that is willing to ignore humanity for the sake of greed or pride. “Most of the world’s biggest crimes are committed by men who sit behind desks, keep their hands clean and sleep at night without dreaming.” (213) The character might have been a product of her times but the author was looking forward.
March 26, 2019
The first novel to win the Edgar award. Forward-thinking in many ways and regressive in others, particularly Stella’s initial inability to question authority, although she shows a lot more initiative and self-awareness later in the book. This owes a lot to Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, particularly the trip Stella and Washington make into the interior of Papua New Guinea. Author Jay lived there for a time, so the descriptions of flora and fauna are authentic and ring vibrant and true to this reader. I also appreciate her anti-colonial views; she illuminates how rapacious greed leads to a lack of value placed on aboriginal human life. The white Australian bureaucrats and opportunists, over and over, bring about death, disease, and an eroding of traditional culture and custom. The language they use to describe the native peoples, patronizing and racist, also illustrates their lack of humanity and moral principle. The villains in this piece are readily identifiable.
I’m not sure I’d call this a mystery as much as one woman’s journey of discovery, although Stella is certainly seeking to find out what, exactly, happened to her husband. I wasn’t as interested in his story as much as her coming of age and coming to a heightened understanding of human nature.
I’m not sure I’d call this a mystery as much as one woman’s journey of discovery, although Stella is certainly seeking to find out what, exactly, happened to her husband. I wasn’t as interested in his story as much as her coming of age and coming to a heightened understanding of human nature.
July 31, 2022
There should be a warning at the beginning of this book since it’s 2022. It was published in 1952 and it is *VERY* 1952. There are some really glaring racist, colonialist, and sexist themes that are hard to swallow. I guess it’s true to the time and place it was written in, which is sad. I picked it up because it was the first on a list of acclaimed mystery books by female authors. The actual mystery is good, but it was tough getting through the other stuff.
October 17, 2024
A perfect mystery that grips you the more you read. The depressing atmosphere of Papua New Guinea and the ominous presence of the black magic can be felt through the emotions of the characters. Whilst I found it a bit slow paced in the beginning, later parts were captivating.
June 5, 2025
I found this book in an antique shop and decided to buy to read while on holiday - had no idea what to expect but I enjoyed this book! Unrelated to the plot but I found the use of language for the senses really captivating :)
May 26, 2017
boring description for woods...
November 25, 2018
Great descriptions of PNG, spooky and surprising ending, some interesting anti-colonial sentiments, and written by a woman in 1952. Definitely worth a read.
Read
September 10, 2022Fevered.
Want to read
October 11, 2023The 100 Best Mystery and Thriller Books of All Time / Time magazine https://bit.ly/3PK8s5q
November 16, 2023
What a fascinating read. Award winner, I get it. This is a unique glimpse into a time and place you don't think of, written by a woman back in the olden times. Wow.
July 20, 2025
It was interesting. A look at an area and time I did know much about. Really enjoyed it!
August 5, 2025
Intriguing
November 29, 2025
A 1954 Edgar Best Novel winner. A notable and very capable crime adventure with strong anti-colonial, anti-imperialist and feminist themes. Prose reminded me of Graham Greene.
December 24, 2017
Thoughts on suicide and colonialism
13 April 2012
This is one of the books that I read for English I and considering some of the reviews that the book received, it seems as if I will be the odd one out on the grounds that I simply did not like it. However a lot of people have compared this book with Heart of Darkness, and that was a book that I really did like. I have put Heart of Darkness on the list of books to read again, so I will try not to say too much about it here. I guess it is because I would like to be a little more familiar with the book before I comment on it, where as for this book I think I will make a commentary without reading it again (not that I actually own a copy of it any more as I gave it to a friend who was studying English the year after me).
It is suggested that this book is a murder mystery as it is about a gold deposit that was found in the mountainous regions of Papua New Guinea and an anthropologist who is living in the region ends up committing suicide, apparently. However his wife, who lives in Australia, does not believe it so she decides to travel to New Guinea to attempt to uncover the mystery and to prove that he did not kill himself. Unfortunately I can't remember all that much about the novel to actually say how it ends, and I raise this because it is not an uncommon theme in mystery stories to try to prove that a suicide is a murder.
It is a difficult concept though because the idea is that a suicide is murder, but translated it means self-murder. Homicide is the murder of another, fracticide is murder of a brother, patricide murder of a father, and so on. However, the problem with suicide is that the culprit and the victim are the same person, so it is not easy to arrest the culprit because the culprit is dead. However, things have changed a lot because it is seen that somebody wanting to commit suicide must be mentally ill and treated as such. In a way I find that a bit disappointing and disrespectful because it is an idea that if you wish to commit suicide then there must be a problem with you namely because no sane and mentally stable person would want to end their life (which is pretty narrow minded in my opinion).
Things are changing somewhat though because it is beginning to be recognised that there are generally external factors that would lead a person to this position. Take an idea where somebody is locked up in gaol and knows that this is what the rest of their life is going to be. The victim is now placed in a position of hopelessness, there is no escape, well, none but an attempt to end one's life. This is a bad example though because, ideally, if one lands up in gaol then one must have done something to put one there (though this is not always the case, and it is pretty narrow minded of me to suggest that). This is not always the case, especially if somebody is subject on going and intense bullying, say a teenager with an alcoholic father (or mother). If the situation is that when the teenager goes to school, he (or she) is subject to bullying, and at home is subject to bullying, there literally is no escape. Wherever the teenager goes the teenager is subject to bullying. As such, there is only one escape.
However, I have moved quite a way away from the main theme of this book, and that is the failures of colonialism (which is said to be the main theme of Heart of Darkness). Colonialism was a problem (and still is with Neo-Colonialism) in that it involves transplanting a society in another land. It worked with the Greeks, apparently they never lost a colony, however it was much different when it came to the British. They actually did lose a few colonies, and also had a lot of trouble transplanting their society into a new realm. The difference that I suspect is that the Greeks colonised the Mediterranean whereas the British colonised the world. With the Greeks, distance wasn't as great, and also many of the colonies were set up in mostly uninhabited regions. This was not the case with Britain, especially when we come to India and China.
However, the book is set in Papua New Guinea, and here we have a vastly different realm to good old England. Like Australia, most of the settlements are on the coast, and even then there aren't that many settlements anyway. Like Australia New Guinea is a pretty harsh land, however in a different way. Australia lacks water and is mostly desert, while New Guinea is mountainous and full of jungle. Even today civilisation does not stretch much inland. This is in a way what the book is about, in that the natural realm will run rough shed over civilisation. We see that in Heart of Darkness, the deeper one travels into the jungle, the more civilisation seems to vanish. Hey, you see this in Australia as you travel further inland into the desert the less civilised the realm becomes. There are places in Australia where it is strongly encouraged that tourists do not go, this is the case with Africa, and New Guinea as well.
13 April 2012
This is one of the books that I read for English I and considering some of the reviews that the book received, it seems as if I will be the odd one out on the grounds that I simply did not like it. However a lot of people have compared this book with Heart of Darkness, and that was a book that I really did like. I have put Heart of Darkness on the list of books to read again, so I will try not to say too much about it here. I guess it is because I would like to be a little more familiar with the book before I comment on it, where as for this book I think I will make a commentary without reading it again (not that I actually own a copy of it any more as I gave it to a friend who was studying English the year after me).
It is suggested that this book is a murder mystery as it is about a gold deposit that was found in the mountainous regions of Papua New Guinea and an anthropologist who is living in the region ends up committing suicide, apparently. However his wife, who lives in Australia, does not believe it so she decides to travel to New Guinea to attempt to uncover the mystery and to prove that he did not kill himself. Unfortunately I can't remember all that much about the novel to actually say how it ends, and I raise this because it is not an uncommon theme in mystery stories to try to prove that a suicide is a murder.
It is a difficult concept though because the idea is that a suicide is murder, but translated it means self-murder. Homicide is the murder of another, fracticide is murder of a brother, patricide murder of a father, and so on. However, the problem with suicide is that the culprit and the victim are the same person, so it is not easy to arrest the culprit because the culprit is dead. However, things have changed a lot because it is seen that somebody wanting to commit suicide must be mentally ill and treated as such. In a way I find that a bit disappointing and disrespectful because it is an idea that if you wish to commit suicide then there must be a problem with you namely because no sane and mentally stable person would want to end their life (which is pretty narrow minded in my opinion).
Things are changing somewhat though because it is beginning to be recognised that there are generally external factors that would lead a person to this position. Take an idea where somebody is locked up in gaol and knows that this is what the rest of their life is going to be. The victim is now placed in a position of hopelessness, there is no escape, well, none but an attempt to end one's life. This is a bad example though because, ideally, if one lands up in gaol then one must have done something to put one there (though this is not always the case, and it is pretty narrow minded of me to suggest that). This is not always the case, especially if somebody is subject on going and intense bullying, say a teenager with an alcoholic father (or mother). If the situation is that when the teenager goes to school, he (or she) is subject to bullying, and at home is subject to bullying, there literally is no escape. Wherever the teenager goes the teenager is subject to bullying. As such, there is only one escape.
However, I have moved quite a way away from the main theme of this book, and that is the failures of colonialism (which is said to be the main theme of Heart of Darkness). Colonialism was a problem (and still is with Neo-Colonialism) in that it involves transplanting a society in another land. It worked with the Greeks, apparently they never lost a colony, however it was much different when it came to the British. They actually did lose a few colonies, and also had a lot of trouble transplanting their society into a new realm. The difference that I suspect is that the Greeks colonised the Mediterranean whereas the British colonised the world. With the Greeks, distance wasn't as great, and also many of the colonies were set up in mostly uninhabited regions. This was not the case with Britain, especially when we come to India and China.
However, the book is set in Papua New Guinea, and here we have a vastly different realm to good old England. Like Australia, most of the settlements are on the coast, and even then there aren't that many settlements anyway. Like Australia New Guinea is a pretty harsh land, however in a different way. Australia lacks water and is mostly desert, while New Guinea is mountainous and full of jungle. Even today civilisation does not stretch much inland. This is in a way what the book is about, in that the natural realm will run rough shed over civilisation. We see that in Heart of Darkness, the deeper one travels into the jungle, the more civilisation seems to vanish. Hey, you see this in Australia as you travel further inland into the desert the less civilised the realm becomes. There are places in Australia where it is strongly encouraged that tourists do not go, this is the case with Africa, and New Guinea as well.
July 12, 2018
3.1***
This was an interesting early Edgar award winner set in Papua, New Guinea. Stella Warwick (against all recommendations) sets out to explore a remote native village in which her husband reportedly committed suicide. The dated anthropology tenets and sorcery overtones intrigued me.
This was an interesting early Edgar award winner set in Papua, New Guinea. Stella Warwick (against all recommendations) sets out to explore a remote native village in which her husband reportedly committed suicide. The dated anthropology tenets and sorcery overtones intrigued me.
January 25, 2017
I had a rather unusual reaction to this book—I believe mostly because of the 1952 "colonialist" sensibility. I selected this book because with it, Charlotte Jay won the inaugural Edgar Award (in 1954) and I was expecting something Raymond-Chandleresque. My expectations did Charlotte Jay a grave injustice.
Charlotte Jay seems incapable of writing a bad sentence; in fact, some are so beautifully crafted that they must be read over and over again, savored like a bit of François Pralus chocolate. Her characters, on the other hand, are seldom likable. As I met the hierarchy of white, colonialist residents of Marapai, it seemed any of them could have been responsible for the murder, and each successive character suggested deeper currents of disturbance than the last. As Stella, our protagonist, strips herself more and more of anything less than her desire to see truth, the story picks up speed and becomes a not only a classic whodunit, but an important—I'd venture to say even groundbreaking—narrative as well. A novel that began quite standoffishly became, in the end, very satisfying.
Characters who seem one-dimensional throughout the first half of the novel develop into believable (and sometimes pitiable) characters, whose motives are understandable in the context of the novel's progression. A novel about villainy and greed; those who become their victims, and the rare survivors. Given the number of reviews this book has had, I'm a little surprised that no one yet has drawn parallels with Stephen King's Bag of Bones. Not nearly as long a novel, nor as detailed, but analogies are certainly feasible.
Beat Not the Bones deserves more than four stars—it's not quite five-star perfection, but the prose remains as fresh and innovative today as it must have been in 1952, and the story, unfortunately, just as relevant.
Charlotte Jay seems incapable of writing a bad sentence; in fact, some are so beautifully crafted that they must be read over and over again, savored like a bit of François Pralus chocolate. Her characters, on the other hand, are seldom likable. As I met the hierarchy of white, colonialist residents of Marapai, it seemed any of them could have been responsible for the murder, and each successive character suggested deeper currents of disturbance than the last. As Stella, our protagonist, strips herself more and more of anything less than her desire to see truth, the story picks up speed and becomes a not only a classic whodunit, but an important—I'd venture to say even groundbreaking—narrative as well. A novel that began quite standoffishly became, in the end, very satisfying.
Characters who seem one-dimensional throughout the first half of the novel develop into believable (and sometimes pitiable) characters, whose motives are understandable in the context of the novel's progression. A novel about villainy and greed; those who become their victims, and the rare survivors. Given the number of reviews this book has had, I'm a little surprised that no one yet has drawn parallels with Stephen King's Bag of Bones. Not nearly as long a novel, nor as detailed, but analogies are certainly feasible.
Beat Not the Bones deserves more than four stars—it's not quite five-star perfection, but the prose remains as fresh and innovative today as it must have been in 1952, and the story, unfortunately, just as relevant.
February 28, 2016
This a classic mystery, widely acclaimed, but my feelings about it are mixed, so I've given it a medium kind of rating. It could have gone up or down as much as two stars. Stella, whose father has just died in Australia, arrives in Papua New Guinea to find the truth of her much older husband's suicide. She is naive and trustful of people she believes to have been David's friends, but gradually realizes that everyone is lying to her. The only person she can trust at all is a man she initially disliked, who feels incapable of any action. Eventually, she treks into the jungle with a man she knows wants to kill her. So far, so good. For the rest, I'll only say that sixty years has brought a large change in what kind of language is appropriate in describing "native" peoples. Even the few decent people in this book use terms that are offensive, and since the natives are ubiquitous and very central to the plot, there's a lot that's difficult to read and mars Jay's otherwise impressive prose.
Want to read
July 2, 2020Beat Not the Bones was first published in 1952, but in 1954 it was awarded the first Edgar Award for Best Novel by the Mystery Writers of America. The novel, set in Papua, is the story of a woman who comes to Papua, New Guinea from Australia to find out how her husband died. Thought to be a suicide, she does not accept this and is determined to learn to truth. A warning to those who find the blatant racism of the 1950s something you want to keep at a distance, this may not be a read you would want. I was a bit startled by it from the outset, but it's lessened somewhat. Hopefully, it will stay that way. Well, I was wrong. I had read about 1/4 to 1/3 of the book and realized that i just didn't want to read any more of it. Highlighting the racism and white male privilege of the 50s was one intention of the author, but given the current state of things, I'm not in the mood to give over my reading time to such reading. I found something else I wanted to read and am better for it. I'm not assigning any stars to the book.
April 7, 2016
Published in 1952, set on an island administered by Australia. In the late 40s and early 50s, Europeans and Australians despised the islanders and considered them primitive and unteachable - although that does not stop certain characters in the book half-believing in the power of vada, or native magic. Isolation and a torrid climate drive some Australians insane. Others lose their moral compass.
When young, naive Emma (Emma in my edition, not Stella) arrives from Australia, convinced her much older archaeologist husband was murdered, she encounters obfuscation and lies. Her quest for the truth reveals a criminal conspiracy where greed meets contempt for island culture.
Excellently written, with fearsome descriptions of the jungle which surrounds the isolated administrative outpost. Sentences such as “He thought at first that it was …the violent, hungry growth of the jungle, the roots clutching the mud and the sap swelling the flat, broad leaves.”
When young, naive Emma (Emma in my edition, not Stella) arrives from Australia, convinced her much older archaeologist husband was murdered, she encounters obfuscation and lies. Her quest for the truth reveals a criminal conspiracy where greed meets contempt for island culture.
Excellently written, with fearsome descriptions of the jungle which surrounds the isolated administrative outpost. Sentences such as “He thought at first that it was …the violent, hungry growth of the jungle, the roots clutching the mud and the sap swelling the flat, broad leaves.”
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews