Rating: 
Summary: Dr.Watson is a good narrator
Review: I almost always like to hear or read people's narration of their past experiences and this book has exactly what i want. I found it difficult to put it down because of the suspense Dr.Watson provides through his interesting narrative. One drawback i may point out here is that Holmes says "May you do us an honor of providing a detailed account of your most singular and most extroadinary event".(this might not be exactly what he says since he words it differently) I got very irratated after seeing it many times.
Rating:
Summary: An excellent edition
Review: This book is perfect for any collector of mystery or crime novels. Its also nice to have so many of the Holmes stories in one place.
Rating:
Summary: You've seen the imitations, now read the real thing
Review: Everyone who's ever muttered "Elementary, my dear Watson" (which, by the way, Holmes never actually says in so many words) should buy this extremely well-priced edition and read it through. It's not only jolly fun, but enlightening: the Hollywood stereotype of Holmes and Watson is a gross caricature of Conan Doyle's characters. Watson is an average man with an average intelligence, and the point of his being there is to serve as a foil for Holmes' vastly superior intellect; if he's depicted as a fool, the point is lost. Likewise, Holmes and Watson are about the same age and grow old together, whereas in the movies Watson often looks like Holmes' grandfather. And as for the usual film plots -- forget it; Conan Doyle came up with far more ingenious, fiendishly difficult mysteries than the scriptwriters ever conceived, and solved them far more plausibly. These stories are true classics, and should be on everyone's list of must-reads.
Rating:
Summary: An ultimate collection for Holmes/Watson fans
Review: If I were to send a gift for somebody who loves detective stories, this book would be my choice! Especially for new readers.. Holmes and Watson shares my childhood, and even now they are always right there in my mind.
Rating:
Summary: PERFECT
Review: This is a great idea. You have all of Sherlock Holmes at your fingertips, no searching aimlessly in a dimly-lit shop for the non-exsistent stories. You can skip and skim and get totally invovled in the stories for as long as you need, and, the selling point for me...........it's virtually INEXPENSIVE!!! I love Christie and Doyle and to me, this was a godsend. One quick order and I have it all. Not, however, like Christie...Back to signing away my life -- and all for a complete set of Christie. If only everything could be as easy as Holmes.
Rating:
Summary: No lover of classic mysteries should be without it
Review: I discovered Sherlock Holmes via a couple of short stories in anthologies in the late 1950's, when I was in 7th grade. These whetted my appetite for more, so I was tickled to discover a copy of this book (in an earlier printing) at the house of a friend. I wish it had been available as a multi-volume edition -- this one was mighty hard to sneak under the covers for post-bedtime reading by flashlight. And it's highly unsuited for summertime use: it'll sink your canoe or cause your hammock to sag to ground level! Still, it's a good, reasonably priced, solidly bound, and well-printed volume that should be in the library of any lover of classic mystery stories.
As for the stories themselves, they're not only THE best mysteries in the English language, but fun to read as a picture of life in the Victorian era. There are some clinkers, and some of the situations and characters are rather absurd (Doyle shares with most of his fellow-countrymen an ineptitude for writing convincing American English!), but in general I'm still amazed at Doyle's ingenuity and his convincing portrayal of life in many different sectors of society. This is one of the few favorite books from my childhood that I still enjoy -- not as an exercise in nostalgia but as a Good Read.
Rating:
Summary: The Legends of the Hawk Eyed Master Sleuth
Review: Before I opened this book, my sence of crime-fighting was just action. When I read the first story- A Study in Scarlet, which is a classic in itself, I was simply fascinated. Many of the stories have minimum violence and are solved with the simplest ease by the Master. His deductions are drawn from what seems to us as obvious, but we could never dream of ever ataining such high powers of observation. I conclude, saying that these are THE greatest mystery stories I've ever read. It is a true masterpiece.
Rating:
Summary: Classic, easy mystery
Review: Not just for mystery buffs, this book pleases readers of all types. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's writing is rapidly paced and quick witted, never dull. Often, it is the characters' humour more than the suspense itself that keeps me reading. The short stories are light and entertaining, and the longer ones are thorough and satisfying. As I read, I find myself trying to put the pieces of the puzzle together, only to be outwitted in the end by the master detective. Not only does Doyle tell a good story, but he also paints a good picture of life in the 19th century, rather like Dickins, but far less depressing. A definite read for a lazy day.
Rating:
Summary: The most complete S.H. compilation, but it takes time!!
Review: I first read this book when I was in the 8th grade (1967). I almost didn't make it to the 9th!! Enthralling and captivating, I didn't put it down for almost 4 months. Thanks to Sir Arthur!!
Rating:
Summary: Begin at the Begining
Review: If you are going to read mysteries, this is the place to start. Here are the deductions from cigarette ash, the impossible cases and the "elementary Watson's" that have become so famous. While the stories are anything but realistic, Doyle makes the impossible plausible and, despite all of the parodies and criticisms, the stories are actually passably believable. Of course, there is still plenty of suspension of disbelief, but if it was absolute realism that you wanted you wouldn't read this book in the first place. The short stories are fast paced and straightforward. The collection includes Doyle's forays into third person writing and stories told by Holmes himself, but neither is anywhere near as good as those narrated by Dr. Watson. The novels vary in quality. The Hound of the Baskervilles is, of course, the classic and A Study in Scarlet (in which Holmes and Watson make their first appearance) is good mostly as an introduction to the characters. It starts well enough, with Holmes doing what he does best, but there is a long story-within-the-story which drags on and on and is, of all things, extremely insulting to Mormons. It should also be noted that the narration can be very racist by modern standards, no worse than any contemporary writing but not much better. Still, this is a must-read for any serious mystery reader and most casual ones.
|
