A Perry Mason Casebook: The Case Of The Sulky Girl / The Case Of The Careless Kitten / The Case Of The Fiery Fingers

Perry Mason #2,21,37

by Erle Stanley Gardner, Parnell Hall (Introduction)

Lost Classic Omnibus. Introduction by Parnell Hall.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction

593 pages, Hardcover

Published January 1, 1999

About the author

Erle Stanley Gardner was an American lawyer and author of detective stories who also published under the pseudonyms A.A. Fair, Kyle Corning, Charles M. Green, Carleton Kendrake, Charles J. Kenny, Les Tillray, and Robert Parr.

Innovative and restless in his nature, he was bored by the routine of legal practice, the only part of which he enjoyed was trial work and the development of trial strategy. In his spare time, he began to write for pulp magazines, which also fostered the early careers of Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler. He created many different series characters for the pulps, including the ingenious Lester Leith, a "gentleman thief" in the tradition of Raffles, and Ken Corning, a crusading lawyer who was the archetype of his most successful creation, the fictional lawyer and crime-solver Perry Mason, about whom he wrote more than eighty novels. With the success of Perry Mason, he gradually reduced his contributions to the pulp magazines, eventually withdrawing from the medium entirely, except for non-fiction articles on travel, Western history, and forensic science.

See more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erle_Sta...

Reviews

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Mr. Mason, how does one go about preventing a murder from being committed?"

That quote sums up what leads to an exciting opening chapter in 'The Case of the Fiery Fingers'. (I reviewed the first two titles separately.) We seem to be off to the races with a pronounced / punchy noir feel; mysterious lady-in-distress and all.

But once we're in gear with that, Gardner hits us with a story structure that seems to echo the 'case' I previously read: 'The Case of the Careless Kitten'. The two cases share a 'nothing is what it seems' narrative combined with what progressively becomes an overly complicated tale. Gardner appears to have a preference for 'knotty'. ~ which is fine, I suppose, if you're on-board with twists within twists (at times, within twists again).

I guess I don't mind it all that much since life - to me - can at times seem needlessly bloated.

There's a particular plus-factor in this 37th PM case. Having now been immersed in his hero for two decades, Gardner (at least here) has rid himself of the awkward language that ran through the two cases I read from earlier years. This time, I didn't notice any of the characters falling into passages laced with unnatural bits of speech, nor did any such language mar descriptive sections. So there's a nicer flow to the read.

~ and Mason's more finely tuned laconic attitude serves him and the reader well. Mason can be very entertaining just by being Mason. Of course, he is again ably assisted by the ever-dependable Della (who I kept wishing was a bit snappier - say along Eve Arden lines - but she's fine as is).

The story can feel somewhat longer than it needs to be. Part of that can be chalked up to 'occupational hazard'. Eventually we're going to get to what is the main attraction of PM books: the trial (this case actually has two of them). Because the trial sections reflect 'the real thing', a lot of what is detailed in the courtroom is information we have already gained from following the story from the beginning. You're reading much of the same info twice, which slows things up a bit.

That said... those who find themselves caught up in it all may not mind Gardner's 'full' approach. He's still telling a pretty good story.

In an engaging introduction, Gardner explains why he dedicated 'Fiery Fingers' to scientist / toxicologist Joseph T. Walker. It reads like a heartfelt tribute and, eventually, you can sense how Walker's dedication to his job is reflected in forensic details essential to the plot.

[DavidO · Rating 5 out of 5]

Three murder mysteries that introduced me to the world of Perry Mason. It's definitely pulp writing, fast paced and more about the situation then the characters.

Sadly, I was never smart enough to solve any of these 3 before Perry Mason told the reader (me) the solution. Definitely not obvious.

The Perry Mason in these books is different than in the TV show. Here he gets down and dirty investigating what happens, in large part because his own clients lie to him so he has to figure out the truth himself. The best part of the show is the court room trials where he rips the guilty party apart. I don't think any real judge would let him do anything that he says or does, but it's still fun to read.

[Ian MacIntyre · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first Perry Mason book. I like Erle Stanley Gardner's writing style. Easy to read, great word usage and intriguing characters. He doesn't give too much away but I sometimes felt dirty after a particular chapter.

So is Della his main squeeze or what?

[Scoats · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've added several of Erle Stanley Gardner's Perry Mason books to my shelves over the decades. For my first reading any of them, I ended up with a triple dose.

This volume has one novel each from the 1930s, 40s, and 50s. All three are rock solid, fun mysteries. The chapters are exactly the right length for enjoyable reading. Gardner's writing is clean, smooth, and fun.

There are some dated throwbacks like how clue is spelled klew (Agatha Christie did that for a while too) and how curb was spelled kerb.

Despite being from an age before TV, before cell phones, before the Internet, and for a few even pretty much before the golden age of radio, these books have held up well and are still fun for modern readers.

Gardner gives a great job of presenting all the clues (or klews) but with enough smoke screen that the endings while logical definitely aren't obvious.

A couple of years ago I finished reading every Agatha Christie book in order (which I don't regret doing though I'm not quite sure how I feel about her writing). I look forward someday to doing the same with many decades of Perry Mason mysteries.

[Carole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Three novels by Erle Stanley Gardner: The case of the sulky girl, The case of the careless kitten, and The case of the fiery fingers are contained in this book. Each was originally written at different times in his career: 1933, 1942, and 1951. The first was not as interesting and captivating as the last two.

[Valerie]

There are three novels in this book. The first, The Case of the Sulky Girl, didn't do much for me, but I found the other two interesting, particularly The Case of the Careless Kitten.

[Carrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 *'s

I am enjoying the comparison of the books to the show- Perry Mason is much sharper and more hard-boiled in the books. :)

[Scoats · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've added several of Erle Stanley Gardner's Perry Mason books to my shelves over the decades. For my first reading any of them, I ended up with a triple dose.

This volume has one novel each from the 1930s, 40s, and 50s. All three are rock solid, fun mysteries. The chapters are exactly the right length for enjoyable reading. Gardner's writing is clean, smooth, and fun.

There are some dated throwbacks like how clue is spelled klew (Agatha Christie did that for a while too) and how curb was spelled kerb.

Despite being from an age before TV, before cell phones, before the Internet, and for a few even pretty much before the golden age of radio, these books have held up well and are still fun for modern readers.

Gardner gives a great job of presenting all the clues (or klews) but with enough smoke screen that the endings while logical definitely aren't obvious.

A couple of years ago I finished reading every Agatha Christie book in order (which I don't regret doing though I'm not quite sure how I feel about her writing). I look forward someday to doing the same with many decades of Perry Mason mysteries.

[Cindy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I told you I have them all I may be a mindless read but I love them