What do you think?
Rate this book
Uncle Abner
Unknown Binding
Published January 1, 1910
2 people want to read
About the author
Melville Davisson Post
192 books11 followersMelville Davisson Post (April 19, 1869–June 23, 1930) is an American author, born in Harrison County, West Virginia. He earned a law degree from West Virginia University in 1892, and was married in 1903 to Ann Bloomfield Gamble Schofield. Their only child, a son, died at eighteen months old and Mrs. Post died of pneumonia in 1919.
After the death of their son, he left law practice and went on an European tour with his wife. Upon return from Europe, he began writing short stories and became America's highest paid short story writer. He was an avid horseman, and died on June 23, 1930, after a fall from his horse, and was buried in Harrison County. His boyhood home, "Templemoor", is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as of 1982.
Although Post's name is not immediately familiar to many in this era, his stories are available through Gutenberg and many collections of detective fiction include works by Post. There is a case to be made for these stories to be among the finest of detective fiction in America. No less than Ellery Queen and Howard Haycraft both praised Post's writing as among the finest of American detective writing.
Post's best-known character is the mystery-solving, justice dispensing Virginian backwoodsman, Uncle Abner. Post also created two other recurring characters, Sir Henry Marquis and Randolph Mason. He also wrote two non-crime novels. His total output was approximately 230 titles.
After the death of their son, he left law practice and went on an European tour with his wife. Upon return from Europe, he began writing short stories and became America's highest paid short story writer. He was an avid horseman, and died on June 23, 1930, after a fall from his horse, and was buried in Harrison County. His boyhood home, "Templemoor", is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as of 1982.
Although Post's name is not immediately familiar to many in this era, his stories are available through Gutenberg and many collections of detective fiction include works by Post. There is a case to be made for these stories to be among the finest of detective fiction in America. No less than Ellery Queen and Howard Haycraft both praised Post's writing as among the finest of American detective writing.
Post's best-known character is the mystery-solving, justice dispensing Virginian backwoodsman, Uncle Abner. Post also created two other recurring characters, Sir Henry Marquis and Randolph Mason. He also wrote two non-crime novels. His total output was approximately 230 titles.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 28, 2022
A pretty good mystery that keeps you involved from the beginning. I like the way Post writes, and our famed detective in this story is Uncle Abner, the uncle who solves several mysteries in many of Post's stories. The story is told from the viewpoint of the nephew and his innocence in how he views the world adds a touch of naivete to the plot that's endearing. Not quite as good as a Sherlock Holmes, but as I've been reading many classical mysteries lately, it's very interesting to see the similarities and differences between Doyle's work and others. The big vocabulary and haughtiness of Uncle Abner is much like Holmes but the crime and clues were a little different. Without giving too much away, I think I'd still recommend Post, if only as a comparison to Doyle's work if you're looking for it.
January 28, 2023
Um breve conto que envolve todos os que vivem em casa...
Não achei nada de muito soberbo ou original neste conto, porém é sempre bom ler os clássicos
Não achei nada de muito soberbo ou original neste conto, porém é sempre bom ler os clássicos
October 6, 2025
Maybe 3.5 stars. Clever idea, but the mediocre execution and the predictable plot twist at the end hamper the story.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews