What do you think?
Rate this book
Houdini and Conan Doyle
In the early 20th century, in the Enlgish-speaking world, Arthur Conan Doyle and Harry Houdini were two of the most feted and famous men alive. And their relationship is extraordinary: As strange as it may seem Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of the ultra-rational detective Sherlock Holmes, was a believer in Spiritualism. He came to his belief, that one could communicate with the dead, after his son was killed in World War I, and became an expert in the field. Harry Houdini, the world's foremost magician, was a friend of Conan Doyle's, but was sceptical of his belief in the supernatural. Houdini took every opportunity to use his knowledge of illusion to expose psychics who he thought were fakes, particularly incensed by their exploitation of grief and insecurity. Based on original research, this sensational duel biography of two popular geniuses conjures up the early 20th century and the fame, personality and competing beliefs.
320 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 15, 2011
21 people are currently reading
508 people want to read
About the author
Christopher Sandford
83 books28 followersChristopher Sandford has published acclaimed biographies of Kurt Cobain, Steve McQueen, Mick Jagger, David Bowie, Keith Richards, Paul McCartney, and Roman Polanski. He has worked as a film and music writer and reviewer for over 20 years and frequently contributes to newspapers and magazines on both sides of the Atlantic. Rolling Stone has called him "the preeminent author in his field today."
His latest project, MASTERS OF MYSTERY (forthcoming November 2011, Palgrave Macmillan) explores Arthur Conan Doyle's and Harry Houdini's incredible friendship and fascination with Spiritualism.
His latest project, MASTERS OF MYSTERY (forthcoming November 2011, Palgrave Macmillan) explores Arthur Conan Doyle's and Harry Houdini's incredible friendship and fascination with Spiritualism.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
January 30, 2017
Three stars because the topic is so fascinating; less than that, for the way it is written. I have very low tolerance for the currently popular fictionalized style of nonfiction writing, in which the author imagines the gestures, feelings, and actions of the subject about whom he is writing--and tortures us with endless paragraphs about Houdini raising an eyebrow or Conan Doyle wiping a bead of sweat from his brow. If you want to be a novelist, be a novelist, but if you are writing non-fiction, let it go! Style aside, this book is even more disappointing because of the intense prejudice of the author against Houdini. This is something I keep running into in books about Houdini; he is an attractive, not to say lucrative, subject due to his drawing power and importance in popular culture, but there is a strong anti-Houdini strain among writers who are enthusiasts of stage magic, spiritualism, or both. The magicians seem to resent his overshadowing of performers who fit the technical definition of "magician" more precisely than he did, while those with an interest in spiritualism naturally resent his debunking of the movement. One way that Sandford shows his contempt for Houdini: Most of the book is about Conan Doyle, with Houdini dragged in when it can't be avoided. And did you know Houdini wasn't very tall? You will by the end of this book! Sanford mentions it almost every time he mentions Houdini. Apparently, being short is a flaw. Makes you wonder how tall Sandford himself is. I am glad I read it because I learned things I did not know before, but it was took a lot of commitment to wade through the poor writing and the endless picking on Houdini.
December 20, 2022
Two stars because of all the primary and secondary sources you can find and enjoy in the notes and bibliography. The author clearly worked very hard to research his subjects, favoring Conan Doyle's story, a man he has written another book about. (This fact should not be surprising.)
But those stars are begrudgingly given, because the author's disinterest in and outright dislike of Houdini is so apparent that it sometimes makes Conan Doyle's devotion to psychic phenomena seem lighthearted. The interpretations of historical events, letters, and actions are framed through this lens, to occasionally bizarre results. On top of this, the author fails to do any interpreting at significant moments that really do call for it, unless it favors Conan Doyle.
Let me start with this baffling quote from late in the book, referring to Houdini's penchant for photographing himself with mediums he debunked or otherwise went to battle against:
"and even to pose for a photograph with their tormentor, a ritual humiliation with almost an anticipatory touch of Abu Ghraib about it."
Okay. Putting aside the hyperbolic description (which the author repeatedly chastises Houdini for using... in promo copy for this shows), using Abu Ghraib as a comparison is not just off-putting, it's offensive. Coupled with his continuous assertions about Houdini's aggression, insecurity, and apparent clout-chasing (oh, and he's short, especially compared to Conan Doyle, did you know?), it's an uncomfortable analogy for an American Jewish man to face.
Unless you've already read some biographies on Houdini, or his own books (I've read a couple of each, including Magician among the Spirits), you're not going to learn much about him. His actions are going to appear self-serving in a malicious or trollish way, not in the way that is standard for showmen to behave. Oh, god forbid a stage magician use hyperbolic patter or copy or to talk themselves up. That's never been done before or since!
But where I really turned off completely was when the author asserted that Houdini probably had ghost writers because his English wasn't proficient enough. Despite all of these letters the author himself is citing. Letters that sound very much like the text in his books.
Oh, and the fact that HOUDINI MOVED TO THE UNITED STATES AS A FOUR YEAR OLD BOY. You're telling me that you don't believe he would be confident in English after FORTY YEARS of speaking it as his primary language? Married to an English speaking woman? With siblings that spoke English? Performing in English across the globe?
What?
I guess it's attitudes like that that WOULD make Houdini self-conscious and insecure. Way to go, guy!
The author also liked to frame Conan Doyle has a naive, sweet, but super intelligent and amazing person with few faults except his own generous mindset.
"Despite the differences in temperament, the one aggressive, the other composed..."
"But on another level, Doyle remained the most personally unassuming of men."
"Such was Houdini’s initial attitude to Conan Doyle: pleasure, perhaps a bit of possessiveness, mixed with the sort of ambivalent pride a backward boy might feel when he finds himself showing off a trophy that makes other people respect him."
"Conan Doyle was sixty-five, and conspicuously lacked Houdini’s all-consuming ego and driving energy..."
"All his life, Conan Doyle had been a man of the most extraordinary physical and intellectual energy. Whether dancing across Arctic ice floes, hurling himself down Swiss ski slopes, or abandoning medicine for the vagarious life of an author, he had always been ready for an adventure."
"the determination, self-discipline, and concentration he had to summon to deal with his commitments on the 'earthly plane' were still enormous."
I'm just...
The book is at a disadvantage from the start. When the author finds one of his subjects to be inferior to the other, how can you write about their relationship in any meaningful way?
One of the moments I found really perplexing was the author glossing over the incident of the letter from Houdini's mother. While often Conan Doyle is given the benefit of the doubt for believing in his spirit guide Pheneas's million predictions of end times, and his insistence in the fairy photos' authenticity, his suspicion that Houdini was being used by Catholics to destroy spiritualism??????, and his claim that Houdini had to be psychic in some way, when it comes to Houdini being upset by a letter that was a clear lie meant to manipulate him, and that lie was written by an apparent friend, the significance of this is given little grace at all. It just kind of happens.
Sir Arthur's wife allegedly channeled Houdini's mother, entirely in English, with no specifics and no quirks, and the Doyles became offended when Houdini eventually stopped humoring them. Houdini is not the irrational one here! He loved his mother dearly, and watching a friend manipulate you, then to act innocent and be touted as level-headed afterwards, trying to frame you as a bull, would make anyone lose patience! It was exactly the sort of situation Houdini had, for years, since before Conan Doyle's full conversion to spiritualism, been opposed to. Conan Doyle proved Houdini's point. And yet there's no meaningful discussion of this incident. Probably the biggest turning point, if not the biggest moment in their friendship!
Another weird issue is the author's desperation to make Houdini appear two-faced. Apparently, he has never heard of the idea of talking behind someone's back. It doesn't mean Houdini is wishy-washy. It means he's humoring Conan Doyle, whose relationship he valued at the time, but whose beliefs were bonkers! Fully bonkers! And harmful in a world full of recent mass death! Merely glossing over this and not applying it to why Houdini would be so passionately anti-medium, doesn't frame their connection well at all. The impression you come out with is that Houdini was using Conan Doyle to look smarter and intellectual, and that Conan Doyle was just a genuine guy who wanted Houdini to believe.
Believe this????
"Conan Doyle continued to communicate, through his wife, with the spirit guide Pheneas, whose warnings about a global apocalypse intensified during 1925."
“Everything is in place for the battle of Armageddon.”
"'I expect in the next three or four years some definite messages will be received to prove the contentions of Spiritualists. I believe it [sic] will come through radio. I think it is along this line that we will get our evidence.'"
"'It was all a 'very deadly plot,' he wrote of one case, before complaining that Houdini was somehow being used by the Catholic Church to obstruct him."
And I didn't even highlight 1% of the weirdest things he insisted were true.
I hope someone writes a better book about their relationship.
But those stars are begrudgingly given, because the author's disinterest in and outright dislike of Houdini is so apparent that it sometimes makes Conan Doyle's devotion to psychic phenomena seem lighthearted. The interpretations of historical events, letters, and actions are framed through this lens, to occasionally bizarre results. On top of this, the author fails to do any interpreting at significant moments that really do call for it, unless it favors Conan Doyle.
Let me start with this baffling quote from late in the book, referring to Houdini's penchant for photographing himself with mediums he debunked or otherwise went to battle against:
"and even to pose for a photograph with their tormentor, a ritual humiliation with almost an anticipatory touch of Abu Ghraib about it."
Okay. Putting aside the hyperbolic description (which the author repeatedly chastises Houdini for using... in promo copy for this shows), using Abu Ghraib as a comparison is not just off-putting, it's offensive. Coupled with his continuous assertions about Houdini's aggression, insecurity, and apparent clout-chasing (oh, and he's short, especially compared to Conan Doyle, did you know?), it's an uncomfortable analogy for an American Jewish man to face.
Unless you've already read some biographies on Houdini, or his own books (I've read a couple of each, including Magician among the Spirits), you're not going to learn much about him. His actions are going to appear self-serving in a malicious or trollish way, not in the way that is standard for showmen to behave. Oh, god forbid a stage magician use hyperbolic patter or copy or to talk themselves up. That's never been done before or since!
But where I really turned off completely was when the author asserted that Houdini probably had ghost writers because his English wasn't proficient enough. Despite all of these letters the author himself is citing. Letters that sound very much like the text in his books.
Oh, and the fact that HOUDINI MOVED TO THE UNITED STATES AS A FOUR YEAR OLD BOY. You're telling me that you don't believe he would be confident in English after FORTY YEARS of speaking it as his primary language? Married to an English speaking woman? With siblings that spoke English? Performing in English across the globe?
What?
I guess it's attitudes like that that WOULD make Houdini self-conscious and insecure. Way to go, guy!
The author also liked to frame Conan Doyle has a naive, sweet, but super intelligent and amazing person with few faults except his own generous mindset.
"Despite the differences in temperament, the one aggressive, the other composed..."
"But on another level, Doyle remained the most personally unassuming of men."
"Such was Houdini’s initial attitude to Conan Doyle: pleasure, perhaps a bit of possessiveness, mixed with the sort of ambivalent pride a backward boy might feel when he finds himself showing off a trophy that makes other people respect him."
"Conan Doyle was sixty-five, and conspicuously lacked Houdini’s all-consuming ego and driving energy..."
"All his life, Conan Doyle had been a man of the most extraordinary physical and intellectual energy. Whether dancing across Arctic ice floes, hurling himself down Swiss ski slopes, or abandoning medicine for the vagarious life of an author, he had always been ready for an adventure."
"the determination, self-discipline, and concentration he had to summon to deal with his commitments on the 'earthly plane' were still enormous."
I'm just...
The book is at a disadvantage from the start. When the author finds one of his subjects to be inferior to the other, how can you write about their relationship in any meaningful way?
One of the moments I found really perplexing was the author glossing over the incident of the letter from Houdini's mother. While often Conan Doyle is given the benefit of the doubt for believing in his spirit guide Pheneas's million predictions of end times, and his insistence in the fairy photos' authenticity, his suspicion that Houdini was being used by Catholics to destroy spiritualism??????, and his claim that Houdini had to be psychic in some way, when it comes to Houdini being upset by a letter that was a clear lie meant to manipulate him, and that lie was written by an apparent friend, the significance of this is given little grace at all. It just kind of happens.
Sir Arthur's wife allegedly channeled Houdini's mother, entirely in English, with no specifics and no quirks, and the Doyles became offended when Houdini eventually stopped humoring them. Houdini is not the irrational one here! He loved his mother dearly, and watching a friend manipulate you, then to act innocent and be touted as level-headed afterwards, trying to frame you as a bull, would make anyone lose patience! It was exactly the sort of situation Houdini had, for years, since before Conan Doyle's full conversion to spiritualism, been opposed to. Conan Doyle proved Houdini's point. And yet there's no meaningful discussion of this incident. Probably the biggest turning point, if not the biggest moment in their friendship!
Another weird issue is the author's desperation to make Houdini appear two-faced. Apparently, he has never heard of the idea of talking behind someone's back. It doesn't mean Houdini is wishy-washy. It means he's humoring Conan Doyle, whose relationship he valued at the time, but whose beliefs were bonkers! Fully bonkers! And harmful in a world full of recent mass death! Merely glossing over this and not applying it to why Houdini would be so passionately anti-medium, doesn't frame their connection well at all. The impression you come out with is that Houdini was using Conan Doyle to look smarter and intellectual, and that Conan Doyle was just a genuine guy who wanted Houdini to believe.
Believe this????
"Conan Doyle continued to communicate, through his wife, with the spirit guide Pheneas, whose warnings about a global apocalypse intensified during 1925."
“Everything is in place for the battle of Armageddon.”
"'I expect in the next three or four years some definite messages will be received to prove the contentions of Spiritualists. I believe it [sic] will come through radio. I think it is along this line that we will get our evidence.'"
"'It was all a 'very deadly plot,' he wrote of one case, before complaining that Houdini was somehow being used by the Catholic Church to obstruct him."
And I didn't even highlight 1% of the weirdest things he insisted were true.
I hope someone writes a better book about their relationship.
August 18, 2015
The linking theme here is a bit overwrought, as these novelty biographies often are, but luckily the protagonists are interesting enough to bear the load. Doyle's surprising Spiritualism does paint him in a dotty & dogmatic light, and he suffers somewhat in comparison to Houdini's debonair debunking, but his avuncular erudition makes up for much of that. They both lived "a long life, which has touched every side", so it just feels a shame that some duller 'on message' material seems likely to have displaced other outlier aspects of their lives.
Luckily the topic is fairly outlandish :), and the author does weave lots of disparate elements together. It's gratifyingly odd that Conan Doyle took the missing Agatha Christie's glove to a Spiritualist to divine her whereabouts. (It just loses some of its lustre when needlessly revisited, purely because it conjoins the worlds of detection, fame & beliefs so neatly). These are the type of juicy facts you're waiting for, nevertheless. It's cool to see how these disadvantaged boys made good, to learn where their drives & fortunes took them in later life, and to read some redolent prose from their own pens and mouths respectively. But the best nuggets for me are the secrets of the seances and the oddities of their lives. Doyle commuted an 'Anglo Indian' gentleman's prison sentence (for alleged cow mutilation & molestation), via his medical knowledge of the eye and his dedication to the cause - eventually helping to establish the Court of Appeals along the way. Houdini's early attempt at a Magic School garnered only one pupil: an elderly prison escapee. That's the sh*t right there. And there's plenty more where it came from, if scattered somewhat sparsely amongst the fastidious filler.
Of course the story doesn't stop when both gentlemen have met their rest. No matter how many mice Houdini had released into darkened seance rooms, or searches commissioned of, um, secluded places, the Spiritualists would always flock to his door. No doubt the giant reward for anyone who could pass on his coded message to his wife played its part ;). The floating 'phosphorous trumpets' did their best, but never quite came through. And in time even the spirit-guide channelled by Doyle's wife let him drift away too.
3.5-
Luckily the topic is fairly outlandish :), and the author does weave lots of disparate elements together. It's gratifyingly odd that Conan Doyle took the missing Agatha Christie's glove to a Spiritualist to divine her whereabouts. (It just loses some of its lustre when needlessly revisited, purely because it conjoins the worlds of detection, fame & beliefs so neatly). These are the type of juicy facts you're waiting for, nevertheless. It's cool to see how these disadvantaged boys made good, to learn where their drives & fortunes took them in later life, and to read some redolent prose from their own pens and mouths respectively. But the best nuggets for me are the secrets of the seances and the oddities of their lives. Doyle commuted an 'Anglo Indian' gentleman's prison sentence (for alleged cow mutilation & molestation), via his medical knowledge of the eye and his dedication to the cause - eventually helping to establish the Court of Appeals along the way. Houdini's early attempt at a Magic School garnered only one pupil: an elderly prison escapee. That's the sh*t right there. And there's plenty more where it came from, if scattered somewhat sparsely amongst the fastidious filler.
Of course the story doesn't stop when both gentlemen have met their rest. No matter how many mice Houdini had released into darkened seance rooms, or searches commissioned of, um, secluded places, the Spiritualists would always flock to his door. No doubt the giant reward for anyone who could pass on his coded message to his wife played its part ;). The floating 'phosphorous trumpets' did their best, but never quite came through. And in time even the spirit-guide channelled by Doyle's wife let him drift away too.
3.5-
July 11, 2012
I won this book in a Goodreads First Reads Giveaway. Thanks!
The story of an usual pair of friends. I struggled to become engaged at times, but wanted to finish the book. Beginning in the 1920's these two very different men formed a unique relationship, especially considering their later strongly differing views on Spiritualism.
Without wanting to give away details, both men were obsessed in their own way with contacting the dead, especially relatives that had passed, and this was the crux of their relationship.
Very well researched and written. For fans of either Doyle or Houdini, there is much to learn about both men, quite a bit of it sad and unfortunate.
Thanks again.
The story of an usual pair of friends. I struggled to become engaged at times, but wanted to finish the book. Beginning in the 1920's these two very different men formed a unique relationship, especially considering their later strongly differing views on Spiritualism.
Without wanting to give away details, both men were obsessed in their own way with contacting the dead, especially relatives that had passed, and this was the crux of their relationship.
Very well researched and written. For fans of either Doyle or Houdini, there is much to learn about both men, quite a bit of it sad and unfortunate.
Thanks again.
July 4, 2016
Competent, well-researched but ye gods did the second half get repetitive and boring.
May 2, 2016
This book has a very honest subtitle.
July 12, 2018
Sandford has put forth a book that is chock full of interesting nuggets about Harry Houdini and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I loved the biographies of these titans' early lives. Interestingly enough, their paths cross and they become friends of sort. Besides being a famous escape artist, illusionist, and magician, Houdini did a few shows as a "psychic." Conan Doyle, the author of Sherlock Holmes, was interested in the occult and psychic mediums. Unlike his famous sleuth, Conan Doyle was all too ready to buy whatever many of the charlatans were selling. And, that's where the sparks began to fly between the two men. If anything, Sandford may have given too much detail of their squabbles, but I was quite impressed with the depth of his research. The pace picks up along with the degree of interest when Sandford details how these two greats died, and how their heirs carried on. (Spoiler Alert: Not too well.) As a Sherlock Holmes fan, and someone who enjoys the amazing magic tricks I found this book interesting and well worth the time.
June 1, 2020
After overviews of the early lives of Harry Houdini and Arthur Conan Doyle, author Christopher Sandford concentrates on their early 20th century rivalry over spiritualism. Houdini would have loved to believe communication with his dead mother was possible, but he couldn't ignore the séance fakery his credentials as a master illusionist enabled him to spot. And despite Sandford's attempts to uncover ground in Doyle's life for his decades-long adherence to the spiritualist gospel, readers are still left wondering why the creator of Sherlock Holmes could so have abandoned any attempt at rationality. Sandford hints strongly at the possibility of malign influence by Doyle's second wife, comparing it, not always unfavorably, with Houdini's own marriage. However, I'd loved to have him dig even more deeply into the Doyles' strange relationship.
I thoroughly enjoyed Sandford's discussion of the surviving Doyle children (Houdini and his wife were childless) and the tribulations of each rival's estate. Splashy, gossipy, and a great read!
I thoroughly enjoyed Sandford's discussion of the surviving Doyle children (Houdini and his wife were childless) and the tribulations of each rival's estate. Splashy, gossipy, and a great read!
May 25, 2021
On the surface you really cannot imagine Harry Houdini and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle having much in common.
Christopher Sandford digs deep to show just how alike the two men actually were. Right down to their stubborn refusal to see things from anyone else's point of view. Which ultimately lead to them going from friends to rivals, one would almost be prepared to say, enemies, over Conan Doyle's belief in spiritualism and Houdini's disbelief in same.
The book tracks the ups and downs of both men's lives, and those of their families. Speaking of which, I have come away for the book wanting to know more about Houdini's wife, Bess. A truly amazing woman on a lot of levels.
This book holds great appeal to anyone interested in the history of spiritualism and stage magic, as well as the lives of two extraordinary men.
Highly recommended.
Christopher Sandford digs deep to show just how alike the two men actually were. Right down to their stubborn refusal to see things from anyone else's point of view. Which ultimately lead to them going from friends to rivals, one would almost be prepared to say, enemies, over Conan Doyle's belief in spiritualism and Houdini's disbelief in same.
The book tracks the ups and downs of both men's lives, and those of their families. Speaking of which, I have come away for the book wanting to know more about Houdini's wife, Bess. A truly amazing woman on a lot of levels.
This book holds great appeal to anyone interested in the history of spiritualism and stage magic, as well as the lives of two extraordinary men.
Highly recommended.
August 8, 2017
There's more than meets the eye.
Arthur Conan Doyle, father of the most rational character ever brought to print, Sherlock Holmes, was a tireless stalwart of supernatural.
Harry Houdini, the greatest magician of all time, was a sort of human with supernatural powers by only leveraging his mental skills and his top-class attention to details.
The supernatural seems to unify them at first, unfortunately then drew a line and Made them fierce opponents.
I've been totally mesmerized by Houdini's personality.
Moreover Sandford is a great storyteller and his book is fascinating and captivating since the beginning.
Arthur Conan Doyle, father of the most rational character ever brought to print, Sherlock Holmes, was a tireless stalwart of supernatural.
Harry Houdini, the greatest magician of all time, was a sort of human with supernatural powers by only leveraging his mental skills and his top-class attention to details.
The supernatural seems to unify them at first, unfortunately then drew a line and Made them fierce opponents.
I've been totally mesmerized by Houdini's personality.
Moreover Sandford is a great storyteller and his book is fascinating and captivating since the beginning.
January 1, 2023
Interesting book with pluses and minuses. Plus: new information f0r me on Houdini's Jewishness and antisemitic reactions to him. Use of different sources on familiar topics. Minus: the author doesn't seem to like Houdini and it shows; the timelines of the two men are often unclear; some really dumb statements; and the usual "I can't help putting my Lefty views in a totally unrelated text, such as references to Margaret Thatcher and Abu Ghraib.
May 4, 2020
A thoughtful, detailed examination of the love-hate relationship between two giants of their day, the world's most popular magician/illusionist and the most celebrated author, the creator of Sherlock Holmes, and their falling out over the rise of Spiritualist movement.
November 13, 2022
Interesting insight into the spiritualist movement of the early 20th century and the unusual realationship and personalities of Sir Arthur and Harry Houdini.
Not a book for everyone. More a book for those interested in either the subject of the main players.
Not a book for everyone. More a book for those interested in either the subject of the main players.
August 25, 2023
I really enjoyed this. If you have an interest in either of these two men, history of spiritualism, the 1920's, illusionists, seances, and more you will find this interesting. As the quote on the cover says (can't remember the source) "very well researched."
November 15, 2025
This was a really interesting read. I will say, there was some jumping around in time that had me a little confused just because I'm not super familiar with this part of history, but I'm sure people more familiar with the material were probably fine.
June 7, 2017
Well researched, pads out the 'friendship' part with separate bios, but constructed to make them look more connected than they really were, actually pretty cleverly.
September 9, 2017
I wasn't very impressed with the structuring of this book, the timeline seemed to skip about a lot. However, I learnt a lot about two very extraordinary men.
April 18, 2018
interesting it is a biography of houdini and arthur Conan Doyle. Very interesting and insightful.
January 11, 2012
I won this book through the Goodreads First Reads Program.
A meticulous study of the relationship between master illusionist Harry Houdini and the remarkable Arthur Conan Doyle, best known as the creator of Sherlock Holmes. Both men shared a tremendous interest in Spiritualism, spending many years and much of their fortunes on trying to contact those who had passed on to the next world. However, as time passed, their paths turned sharply in different directions, with Houdini bent on debunking fake spiritualists and Conan Doyle determined to support and spread the word of these same people.
I found it fascinating and a little sad that Conan Doyle, a doctor, prolific writer and obviously brilliant man seemed so sold on Spiritualism and its practioners, even when faced with evidence of fraud. Conan Doyle suffered several family losses during World War I, including his son and his brother. It would be interesting to read more about the relationship between World War I and all of the families it tore apart and the rise of the Spiritualism movement.
The author presents many examples of false spiritualists, ranging from the comic to the truly sordid. This also piqued my interest in reading more about the Spiritualism phenomenom. A worthwhile read for anyone with an interest in Houdini, Conan Doyle, and/or the Spiritualism movement of the early twentieth century.
A meticulous study of the relationship between master illusionist Harry Houdini and the remarkable Arthur Conan Doyle, best known as the creator of Sherlock Holmes. Both men shared a tremendous interest in Spiritualism, spending many years and much of their fortunes on trying to contact those who had passed on to the next world. However, as time passed, their paths turned sharply in different directions, with Houdini bent on debunking fake spiritualists and Conan Doyle determined to support and spread the word of these same people.
I found it fascinating and a little sad that Conan Doyle, a doctor, prolific writer and obviously brilliant man seemed so sold on Spiritualism and its practioners, even when faced with evidence of fraud. Conan Doyle suffered several family losses during World War I, including his son and his brother. It would be interesting to read more about the relationship between World War I and all of the families it tore apart and the rise of the Spiritualism movement.
The author presents many examples of false spiritualists, ranging from the comic to the truly sordid. This also piqued my interest in reading more about the Spiritualism phenomenom. A worthwhile read for anyone with an interest in Houdini, Conan Doyle, and/or the Spiritualism movement of the early twentieth century.
July 7, 2012
This wasn't quite as entertaining a read as Hiding the Elephant by Jim Steinmeyer, but Masters of Mystery: The Strange Friendship of Arthur Conan Doyle and Harry Houdini by Christopher Sandford added dimensions to the era of spiritualism that the former book only touched on. I had never known that Doyle and Houdini had corresponded extensively despite their differing views on spiritualism. Nor did I know that, Doyle--creator of the scientifically-minded detective Sherlock Holmes--was an outspoken advocate of mediums, seances, spirit guides, and the afterlife. These aspects were fascinating, but I think I was able to appreciate them better because I had read Hiding the Elephant first.
January 9, 2013
Reading this now... Another great find in the library's New Non-Fiction section.
I'm a fan of both Houdini and Conan Doyle and their respective works. I first heard about their friendship and philosophical disagreements at a presentation by Jamy Ian Swiss, the magician, lecturer, and mentalism myth buster. Intriguing! I heard about it again at the Houdini Museum in Scranton PA... Facinating!!
I've been eager to learn more and I hope this book will slant my thirst.
5/27 -- Only 20 pages in so far but it feels pretty solid...
I'm a fan of both Houdini and Conan Doyle and their respective works. I first heard about their friendship and philosophical disagreements at a presentation by Jamy Ian Swiss, the magician, lecturer, and mentalism myth buster. Intriguing! I heard about it again at the Houdini Museum in Scranton PA... Facinating!!
I've been eager to learn more and I hope this book will slant my thirst.
5/27 -- Only 20 pages in so far but it feels pretty solid...
September 3, 2013
Apart from the fact that Conan Doyle was the author of the flamboyant Sherlock Holmes and Houdini was a great magician,I never knew anything about either of these great men.What the book has left me with is a close familiarity with the lives and nature of these men,their ideals,journeys and what shaped them.
This book is about two men who stood grounded on their belief to as far extents of test it may have taken them and how they endured unshaken until their last breath as to which their mutual relationship was subjected to.
Wonderful book with rich information on truly amazing people.
This book is about two men who stood grounded on their belief to as far extents of test it may have taken them and how they endured unshaken until their last breath as to which their mutual relationship was subjected to.
Wonderful book with rich information on truly amazing people.
April 4, 2016
I did not complete the book because, after a while, it seemed that the arc of the story had plateaued. The development of Houdini and Doyle in relation to each other was interesting and the degree of public enthrallment with the supernatural mind boggling. I see it again in the devolution of the scifi channel into the sifi channel, devoted to a great extent to ghost shows purporting to be real. Will our willingness to be duped by con men, tv ministers, new age gurus, and dr. Oz cure alls never cease?
January 15, 2012
Well-researched/-documented, but not all that interesting, summary of the spiritualist movement of the early 1900's. Part of my issue is that, unfortunately, with non-fiction, you can't fabricate an audience-pleasing finale. There never was an "a-ha" moment when the dupes of all the frauds find out how "used" they were. But, obviously, that's not the author's fault.
However, I did learn a lot about Houdini and Conan Doyle.
However, I did learn a lot about Houdini and Conan Doyle.
January 20, 2012
I really enjoyed this biography, but I love Doyle and Houdini. The fact that they had similar backgrounds and were both interested in the spiritualism religion, albeit from opposing viewpoints was fascinating. Sandford did a great job of not only giving readers an unbiased look into the lives of these men and their families, he also incorporated the world history of the time. A really interesting read.
January 24, 2013
I absolutely loved this book. As a huge Houdini fan (and, I suppose a slight fan of Sherlock Holmes) I couldn't wait to read this book and when I started, I couldn't stop. It was fascinating and exciting.
As somebody who was raised with a spiritual belief, but who also allows myself to be somewhat sceptical, this book managed to satisfy my inner spiritualist as well as my inner sceptic on equal levels. Loved it!
As somebody who was raised with a spiritual belief, but who also allows myself to be somewhat sceptical, this book managed to satisfy my inner spiritualist as well as my inner sceptic on equal levels. Loved it!
December 8, 2011
I enjoyed this book tremendously. I was always aware that Conan Doyle was interested in the paranormal but this book gives a further depth of understanding on the man behind Sherlock Holmes. It was interesting to find out the relationship between Conan Doyle and Houdini. I recommend this book highly to fellow Sherlockians and fans of Conan Doyle. Mr. Sandford did a fantastic job.
January 8, 2012
I liked this book but didn't love it. I loved the information given about the two men. But didn't really see how the book wanted to tie them together. Rather interesting. Slow at times. I would give it three stars.
Want to read
November 13, 2011I received an ARC of this book from GoodReads on November 12, 2011. As I am also attending school right now, my leisure reading time is minimal. I will post a review as soon as possible... sorry for the delay.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews