The Singular Adventures of MR Sherlock Holmes

by Alan Stockwell

Book Overview

"I suppose, Watson, we must look upon you as a man of letters," said Mr Sherlock Holmes. "How do you define the word singular?" "Curious - extraordinary," I suggested. He shook his head at my... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1846855047
• ISBN13: 9781846855047
• Release Date: January 2006
• Publisher: Exposure Publishing
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Perfect is the Enemy of Good Enough

I have been reading Sherlock Holmes pastiches by writers like Mike Ashley, Lyndsay Fay, Denis O Smith, and June Thomson. To stay rooted to the Canon, I’ve been alternating with original canonical stories by Doyle. Comparing them back-to-back, as it were, I can honestly say that the works of the writers I’ve named above - while not flawless - are consistently excellent. It’s quite easy to step from Doyle’s “The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle” or “A Case of Identity” to a story by any of them and feel like you’ve never left the Canon. Sadly, this is not so with Alan Stockwell’s “The Singular Adventures of Mr Sherlock Holmes.” I admit this review is a little premature, as I’m presently about halfway through it, but the patterns are clear: Despite what the reviewers quoted on the book’s back cover have to say, there is NO way for a perceptive reader to mistake this for Doyle’s work. First, the proofreading and/or editing let a lot of little things through: Missing commas, run-on sentences, and homophonic errors. (E.g.: You don’t “reign in” a horse, you rein it in. A king or queen reigns. A Victorian would have never made that mistake!) Mr Stockwell often fails to describe people in any adequate way, something at which Doyle excelled. (In one story a constable is described only as “a stout man of the law,” nothing more. Is he tall? Short? Pale? Ruddy? Does “stout” mean sturdy or heavyset? Or simply reliable? What color is his hair? Etc...). One of the more noticeable transgressions is the failure to use attribution in dialogue - at one point almost a full page of dialogue - between three people - went unattributed, leaving me wondering who was speaking. Doyle used attributions masterfully, often with descriptions of speech or accompanying action. This kept long conversations, where needed, from becoming monotonous. Similarly, Doyle changed scenes gracefully - the changes were never jarring. Mr Stockwell’s scene changes, and his story endings, sometimes leave the reader feeling they should have been a few paragraphs, or a few pages, longer. One story in particular, “The Blue Silk Underwear,” has both Holmes and Watson acting quite out of character. Holmes is a boor, and Watson is stupid. These aren’t the men we know! In fact, in at least three of the stories in this book we see Holmes being quite unnecessarily rude to people - one of them Watson himself. Similarly, in the story, “The Bride of the Moon,” Holmes shows a staggering ignorance about show business and stagecraft - not even knowing what “upstage” or “the wings” were - while Watson uncharacteristically comments on something as, “very cool.” Who are these people? Is there a saving grace? Yes, actually, there is. I judge writing on two basic criteria: How good is the story? And how well is it told? And while Mr Stockwell misses the mark on Watson’s narrative voice, his stories are, for the most part, actually pretty good. They usually move at a steady clip, the settings are good, and - best of all - the mysteries are clever! So - if you can overlook the glaring imperfections in the narration, the stories are enjoyable. In addition, these are bite-sized little stories, averaging 10-15 pages each, and as such make a quick and easy diversion. I will add to this review when I’ve finished this book. I’ll then go on the read his second Sherlock Holmes book, “The Singular Exploits of Mr Sherlock Holmes.” I only hope the second book, written some years later, shows a better grasp of Watson’s writing style.