Hello Bookworms!,
During the semesters at college it is
hard to be able to read a book on top of all the work, studying, interning, and
textbook reading, so to keep me reading during the semester, I have been taking
time every so often to read one of short stories from the Sherlock Holmes
canon. A few weeks ago, I posted my thoughts on A Scandal in Bohemia. This time
I will be examining The Red-Headed League.
Summary:
A
new organization is brewing in London. The red-headed league. The league has a
job opening. Only red-heads need apply and only a red-head with the right shade
of red hair will be selected. Miraculously, Mr. Jabez Wilson, was perfect for
the job. Then, just as soon as it started, the job and the league are
dissolved. Something is amiss. Can Sherlock Holmes figure it out and find the
culprit? Find out in The Red-Headed League by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
original illustration by Sidney Paget
Review:
The
Red-Headed league was an interesting tale. In typical Sherlock Holmes style, it
seems that it will be impossible to solve the mystery and then suddenly
Sherlock has it and will weave an intricate trap to catch the culprit
red-handed! One of my favorite parts of the story though is the intimate look
we get into Sherlock Holmes and his love for music. Holmes takes a little time
during the story to listen to the music being played at St. James Hall. I find
Dr. Watson’s description of watching his friend “wrapped in the most perfect
happiness, gently waving his long thin fingers in time to the music, while his
gentle smiling face and his languid dreamy eyes were as unlike those of
Sherlock Holmes the sleuth hound” is a beautiful and rare glimpse into Sherlock
Holmes the man and is likely my favorite part in the whole story. I do recommend
this story though for anyone interested in the original Sherlock Holmes works
by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
**This is the book I am using to read the
Sherlock Holmes stories. I like the layout of the book, the only drawback is
that it is not a complete version of the original Sherlock Holmes works some of
the short stories were not included. However, it does include the whole novel
“The Hounds of Baskervilles” and the short stories are published in the same
fashion as they originally were in The Strand with all the illustrations by
Sidney Paget. At just $10 I recommend it to anyone who wants to become
acquainted with the original Sherlock Holmes works for the first time like
myself.
You can buy the book hereUntil next time,
Lizzie <3
2 comments:
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Lizzie. I read through all of the Sherlock stories years ago, and tried to guess the conclusions. If I remember right, after I had read a few of them, I could kind of guess the solution. I never did it well simply by looking at clues in the story, though. I felt Doyle kept us a little too in the dark to solve it ourselves.
One of the most interesting stories for me was A Study In Scarlet which involved Doyle detailing points of the Mormon church. Fascinating for us Americans.
Thanks for the review!
Gina,
I'm so glad you liked the review! and welcome to See Lizzie Read! I've not been able to guess any of the stories yet! I do think that Conan Doyle did keep us in the dark (a lot more on some stories than others) but then again, I kind of like that. There's a part of me that doesn't actually want to know but be shocked at the end lol!
My all time favorite has to be "The Speckled Band". It was the first mystery of its kind I had seen as a child.
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