Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, June 2021

+PROS

• Classic detective mystery: answers are always found even if the culprit(s) is not exactly brought to justice
• Perfect (spooky at times) cozy reading for cool summer nights or autumnal weather
• Vivid setting and tone that place you in the time period

-CONS

• Some cultural references do not age well, i.e. casual racism and nativism

*GREAT GRAYS

• How clues and context for solving a puzzle can be dependent on time period (2020s vs 1880s society)
• The factor that technology plays in a narrative: setting-wise and plot-wise

Prior to reading Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, all of my background knowledge regarding the genius detective of deductive observation came from cultural references and the BBC television series Sherlock. Often I shy away from works written during the nineteenth century and earlier, although I am making an effort to change that. I tend to stumble over the syntax in particular, and the archaic cultural norms are difficult to look past. But this past October, I craved cozy mysteries without the gore or explicit violence found in today’s mystery and thriller genres. I also have had this collection sitting on my bookshelf for years! The reading experience ended up being quite a pleasant surprise.

Sherlock Holmes is an odd, blunt Londoner drawn to the most peculiar of conundrums. Along with his loyal companion, Dr. John Watson, Holmes has a reputation throughout England (and afar) as someone who can solve any oddity or mystery through the art of observation and deductive reasoning. Whether it’s the appearance and then disappearance of a mysterious Red-Headed League or the fascination held by far too many people in one particular goose, the thrill of solving the puzzles is what drives Holmes to success. With that said, the undefeatable Holmes does, in fact, get beat in one of the stories in this collection: “A Scandal in Bohemia.” My favorite short story without a doubt, it features the one whom Holmes refers to as ‘the woman,’ Irene Adler. A queen on the television show, Sherlock, Adler is just as spectacular in the short story. 

“He used to make merry over the cleverness of women, but I have not heard him do it of late. And when he speaks of Irene Adler, or when he refers to her photograph, it is always under the honourable title of the woman” (“A Scandal in Bohemia,” p. 22).

I also enjoyed the subtle creepiness found in stories like “The Copper Beeches” and “The Speckled Band.” The former includes a nanny required to dress like a couple’s daughter who has supposedly left for America, while the latter involves exotic pets roaming the English countryside terrorizing the village folk. These, I was disappointed to find, were not included in the first season of Sherlock, but I was thrilled when references were made to “The Five Orange Pips” linked to Moriarty of all people. And, of course, Irene Adler made multiple awesome appearances in the TV series. It was fun to compare literature to television adaptation, especially when it comes to the heavy influence or lack thereof regarding technology. While reading The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, the missing white noise of modern technology was amazingly evident. No cell phones, social media, televisions or computers. An extremely different world from today, especially when rewatching Sherlock where today’s technology is a huge tool for Holmes, Watson and all other characters. It was a strange comfort, though, reading this collection with its simple technology. It slowed things down and added to the autumnal atmosphere, and it would certainly fit right in with a wintry day or a cool summer night as well. By the end I was even getting pretty good at using basic deductions to piece some of the puzzles together before their reveal! Are you up for the challenge, my dear Watson?

Other books like this…

• Agatha Christie’s Partners in Crime (collection, classic mysteries)
• Dodie Smith’s I Capture the Castle (novel, quirky/English countryside)
• Dorothy Sayers’s Whose Body? (novel, classic mystery)