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 The world's most famous detective is back Jul 07, 2007
This is Arthur Conan Doyle's second collection of short stories originally published in the Strand magazine. Reading my way through the canon for the first time, I am often struck by how violent and frightening the stories sometimes are, in contrast to the cozy, fireside mysteries I had expected. (Just for the record, it comes as a pleasant surprise.) Within the pages of this fine book, you will encounter a brutal mutiny on the high seas, a sinister case of kidnapping and torture, and any number of fiendish murders, all unraveled by the deductive genius of Sherlock Holmes. Doyle continues to construct fascinating mysteries and shows his more enlightened side with the sympathetic treatment of interracial marriage in "The Yellow Face," which is welcome in light of the occasional problematic references to race in some of his earlier works.
2 of 4 found the following review helpful:
Third-best of the Sherlock Holmes short story collections! Aug 16, 2004
Although he also wrote several novels featuring the world's greatest fictional detective Sherlock Holmes, it was especially in his short stories that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle perfected the Holmes formula. "The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes" (published in 1893) is the second of the five collections of Holmes short stories. Along with the third collection ("The Return of Sherlock Holmes"), "Memoirs" is generally regarded as inferior to the superlative first collection ("The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes), but easily better than the last two in the series ("His Last Bow" and "The Case Book of Sherlock Holmes"). This collection includes Silver Blaze (usually regarded as one of the five all-time most popular stories in the Holmes canon), but also contains other excellent stories like The Stock-broker's Clerk, and The Musgrave Ritual, and favorites like The Reigate Puzzle, The Greek Interpreter, and The Final Problem. Those who have already enjoyed "Adventures" will certainly not want to miss "Memoirs".
Here's a list of the stories in this collection (with the better stories marked with stars):
**Silver Blaze, 1892 - Often regarded as one of the five all-time top 5 Holmes stories ever, this tale has Sherlock Holmes unravel the mystery behind the sudden disappearance of the prized race-horse Silver Blaze (favorite for the upcoming Wessex Plate), and the brutal murder of her trainer John Straker.
The Yellow Face, 1893 - Sherlock gets it wrong as he surmises that the strange behaviour of Grant Munro's American wife Effie is because her former husband is not dead.
**The Stock-broker's Clerk, 1893 - Just when he's about to start a new job at Mawson's, Hall Pycroft is offered another job copying out parts of a telephone directory for a ridiculously high salary, which turns out to be part of a scheme reminiscent of the favorite "The Red-headed League".
The 'Gloria Scott', 1893 - In a story with overtones of the premise behind "The Sign of Four", the arrival of an old sailor brings Mr. Trevor terror and death, as he is forced to face his past involvement as part of mutiny on the ship "Gloria Scott" while journeying to Australia as a convict.
**The Musgrave Ritual, 1893 - In another top ten favorite, Holmes unravels the strange "Musgrave Ritual" to solve the mystery behind the disappearance of a butler and a maid, and the discovery of bag with rusted metal and pieces of glass in a nearby lake at the home of Reginald Musgrave.
*The Reigate Puzzle , 1893 - While staying with Watson's friend Colonel Hayter near Reigate, Holmes gets to the bottom of the mysterious burglaries at the nearby Acton estate and the Cunningham estate, as well as the murder of the Cunningham's coachman William.
The Crooked Man, 1893 - Colonel Barclay is apparently murdered by his devoted wife Nancy, but Holmes uncovers the involvement of another party who is intimately involved in both of their pasts.
The Resident Patient, 1893 -Dr. Percy Trevelyan is paid to practice medicine in the house a gentleman called Blessington, and when Blessington is apparently commits suicide, it takes Holmes to explain the connection of these events with a gang of five bank robbers.
*The Greek Interpreter, 1893 - Sherlock pairs up with his brother Mycroft Holmes, whose neighbour Melas is taken to a secret location to act as a Greek interpreter in a very suspicious affair involving a woman and man from Greece.
The Naval Treaty, 1893 - Holmes helps Percy Phelps, a former class-mate of Watson, recover an important naval treaty document that was stolen.
*The Final Problem, 1893 - Often regarded as being in the top ten of the canon, here Holmes apparently meets his end in a duel at the hands of Professor Moriarty, "the Napoleon of crime", after Holmes has had his gang arrested and unmasked him as the organizer and mastermind behind criminal activity in London.
- GODLY GADFLY
0 of 1 found the following review helpful:
 A study of timetables Jun 10, 2004
These are some of my favorite stories in the Canon! Silver Blaze includes the memorable line about "the curious incident of the dog in the night-time" ("The dog did nothing in the night-time. That was the curious incident, remarked Sherlock Holmes)". The Gloria Scott may be the start of Holmes career as consulting detective, and in these Memoirs we also have the introduction of brother Mycroft. The annotation by Leslie Klinger on this edition is superb, with diversions into the constant problem of train timetables (Did Watson purposely obscure these facts?). I was interested in her annotation of the difference between American and English editions (for example in "Yellow face" the longer time that Grant Munro was silent in the American Edition was "presumably because inter-racial marriage was unacceptable in America in the 1890's"). The footnotes always help to place the stories in context (for example what is "brain-fever" suffered in 7 of the Holmes stories?) and also detect inconsistencies in Watson's telling. Perhaps my favorite footnote is in "The Yellow Face" stating that actor William Gillette may have been to the Holmes household and met the page "Billy" (Who was played by Charlie Chaplin in 1903!). The few appendices deal; with "Sherlock Holmes the Horseplayer", "The post-graduate years", or "Theories of Mycroft Holmes". The Sidney Paget drawings are always welcome!
1 of 3 found the following review helpful:
Grab These While You Are Still Able Nov 03, 2002
What can we say about the literary icon Sherlock Holmes that hasnt already been? Very little, so we therefore redirect our evaluations towards the unending line of dramatizations that even today are still being released. In my humble opinion, these are the best efforts, certainly in pure audio format, of these immortal tales ever to be produced. Merrison may at first bug you as he did me. We are used to a more booming authoritative Holmes. Merrison has a decidedly very small and nasally timbre to his voice. But his incredible acting abilities will quickly win you over. His absolute command of the situations and his sadly all too sparsely employed dry humor; make him as formidable a Holmes as any who have attempted the role. Contrast to Jeremy Brett's somewhat effeminate and decidely dark interpretation of the great detective, Merrison offers a much more genial and personable version, yet one that is no less impressionable than any of his predecessors. But it's the late Michael Williams to me, however, who finally after 100 years of fruitless attempts by actors, displays a true understanding of the character of the narrator, John Watson, and in doing so, makes these productions such a resounding triumph. Watson is all too often seen as a boob, ala Nigel Bruce. Or when not, he is played as dry humorless tagalong. These stories, through Williams's depictions, offer us at last an interesting and complex Watson. As Doyle no doubt intended him to be. Clearly no match for his constant companion intellectually, but as the absolute invaluable assistant to Holmes. Gone are such ponderings as "Why would a genius keep company with such a fool?" Or "Why would such an interesting multi faceted eccentric, befriend a lifeless, vapid man of medicine?" As in all BBC productions, the supporting casts and sound effects, provide true listening enjoyment in the spirit of the golden age of radio.
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
THE definitive Sherlock Holmes -- a pleasure to read! Oct 18, 2002
What a wonderful surprise it was to come across Leslie Klinger's outstanding annotated versions of the Sherlock Holmes stories on Amazon! Klinger's notes are extremely helpful and informative (not to mention entertaining), and the copious illustrations by Paget are a great addition as well. This (and the other volumes, of which Adventures, Hound of the Baskervilles, and Study in Scarlet have been published to date) are a worthy successor to William Baring-Gould's justly acclaimed annotated Holmes from years back, and are, in opinion, a better value and more enjoyable read than the rather dry Oxford editions. If you are new to Sherlock Holmes, this may not be the most economical way to pick up all of Conan Doyle's work. But if you are a long-time Holmes fan, or just want to experience the Holmes stories in a deeper and more informed way, I can think of no better purchase than this. Very highly recommended!!!
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