Book Review: His Last Bow

His Last Bow

by Arthur Conan Doyle

301 pages // published in 1917 // crime, mystery

BOOK DESCRIPTION

'His Last Bow', the title story of this collection, tells how Sherlock Holmes is brought out of retirement to help the Government fight the German threat at the approach of the First World War. The Prime Minister himself requests Holmes's services to hunt down the remarkable German agent, Von Bork. Several of the detective's earlier cases complete the volume, including 'Wisteria Lodge', 'The Bruce-Partington Plans', and 'The Disappearance of Lady Frances Carfax'. In 'The Dying Detective', Dr Watson is horrified to discover Holmes at death's door from a mysterious tropical disease as his friend lays a trap for a murderer.

THE ADVENTURE OF WISTERIA LODGE:
A bleak tale with ominous clues leading up to the solution -- including a pail of blood. Indeed.

THE ADVENTURE OF THE BRUCE-PARTINGTON PLANS:
One of my favorites! Includes death by train in a particularly peculiar fashion.

THE ADVENTURE OF THE DEVIL'S FOOT:
In which Holmes and Watson willingly replicate the method by which other persons have expired. (Thrilling, no?) Also, we see Holmes' moral philosophy in rare form.

THE ADVENTURE OF THE RED CIRCLE:
A lodger with a secret. A fun mystery.

THE DISAPPEARANCE OF LADY FRANCES CARFAX:
A classic trail of clues -- which only the Great Detective himself could trace.

THE ADVENTURE OF THE DYING DETECTIVE:
Ah! A definite favorite of mine! Holmes, ever so sneaky, so clever, so true. A memorable tale.

THE ADVENTURE OF THE CARDBOARD BOX:
A gruesome little story. One of the highlights for me was Holmes' deductive mind reading. How does he do it?

HIS LAST BOW:
A story like no other. From the first sentence... It's just so sinister!

BUY YOUR COPY!
paperback

Book #2 completed // 20th Century




P.S. Like and vote for this review on Goodreads.

#FREE Audio Book: The Lost World by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

If you enjoy listening to audio books, do check out this limited time FREEBIE from Tantor Media!

A Jurassic tale, from the original mastermind behind Sherlock Holmes...





The Lost World

Author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Narrated by Michael Prichard

Publication date Mar 2, 2009

Running time 9 hrs

This imaginative 1912 fantasy recounts a jungle expedition's encounter with living dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures as it follows an eccentric paleontologist and his companions into the wilds of the Amazon.

— Download (free for a limited time) at tantor.com

Favorite Finds #50 {Book Stuff + Chess}

Here's a week's worth of interesting and genius things I've found online...



March of Books
{Kindred Grace}

The annual blog series about BOOKS has returned! You should check out what Kindred Grace has been posting this month. Lots of fun articles and even a few giveaways.

How Arthur Conan Doyle's Brutal Scifi Story Became A Horrific Reality
{io9}

An interesting coincidence in history.

24 Brilliant Bookmarks You Need In Your Life
{Buzzfeed}

I would definitely enjoy using several of these myself!

Alternate sets
{Chess Tales}

Who wouldn't love a unique chess set like this?

NEW Sherlock Holmes story is discovered... (yes, from Doyle himself!)

Have you heard the brilliant news yet?!

A long-forgotten story about Holmes and Watson has resurfaced after 80 years...

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote it himself in 1904 for a fundraiser effort to save a local bridge in Selkirk, Scotland.



\\ PIN IT \\

{ Read the details of the amazing discovery via The Telegraph. }

Furthermore, the short story has already been published online, much to the delight of us Holmesians!

In fact, click over to Open Culture to read the entire story of Doyle's. By the by, the name of this special treasure is called... "Sherlock Holmes: Discovering the Border Burghs and, By Deduction, the Brig Bazaar".

ENJOY!

Favorite Finds #44

Here we are at the last Friday of the year. The last of the Favorite Finds that I'll be sharing with you in 2013. Who knows what delights I'll be sharing in 2014?! So then, take a look through some of these pages if you like. They're just a few things I happened to enjoy myself.

To start out the list... a couple more reading challenges I plan to take on...


Lucy Maud Montgomery Reading Challenge
{Reading to Know}

I'm excited to again partake in Carrie's January challenge! I plan to read the book I won from her blog last year (yay!), Akin to Anne, and also join her in reading The Blue Castle (which I downloaded online for free). Come join us if you're interested in reading any of LMM's writings for this next month!

Read Scotland 2014
{Peggy Ann's Post}

When I was invited to take part in a Scottish reading challenge, I couldn't resist! I'm joining at the "The Highlander" level, hoping to read 8 books by Scottish authors this year, including: The Sign of Four and The Hound of Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Duncan's War by Douglas Bond, The Golden Key and The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald, The Young Fur Traders by R. M. Ballantyne, The Far Side of the Loch by Melissa Wiley, & The Keys of the Kingdom by A. J. Cronin. A good selection of literature by Scots, if I do say so myself.

I Scarce Can Take It In
{Inspiring Daring}

In Rachelle's words: "....Christmas isn't over, you know. The day has dawned and gone, but that Baby, that Man, that Savior, He lives. And He loves...."

5 Things Photography Has Taught Me about Creativity
{HOW Design}

My sentiments exactly! Photography has opened my brain into other angles of creative thinking that I wouldn't have achieved otherwise.

A few photographs of a festive hedgehog
{Sword of Ink}

Hedgehogs are just soo cute. But this one takes the cake!

Arthur Conan Doyle vs. George Bernard Shaw

Does the name Sir Arthur Conan Doyle ring a bell with you? And what associates him with the Titanic? Ah! When I discovered this hidden piece of history, I couldn't imagine the wonderfulness I had stumbled upon!

At the time of the Titanic's wreck, Doyle was 52 years old. He was already well into his writing career (Sherlock Holmes) at the time and quite popular in the United Kingdom through his success. No, Doyle was not on the Titanic---thankfully he didn't have to live through that experience, but he was well-read on the subject through the newspapers. So, when one of his own fellow friends (also an author) wrote an argumentive letter to the editor of a popular newspaper, Doyle responded.

George Bernard Shaw was the friend spoken of, who started this debate in the newspaper exactly 1 month after the Titanic's sinking, in May 1912. His piece began by stating:

"Why is it that the effect of a sensational catastrophe on a modern nation is to cast it into transports, not of weeping, not of prayer, not of sympathy with the bereaved nor congratulation of the rescued, not of poetic expression of the soul purified by pity and terror, but of a wild defiance of inexorable Fate and undeniable Fact by an explosion of outrageous romantic lying?"

He believed that frivolous, poetic-sounding lying had been used, and true British morals hadn't been observed, by illustrating how in one of the lifeboats in particular, there was "One woman for every five men", which contradicted the "women and children first" rule. George Bernard Shaw went into how Captain Smith "paid the penalty" for steaming through the icefields at high speeds, with his life. He had other thoughts on certain other people who were aboard the Titanic, and dealt with them roughly. He ended this letter by saying:

"I ask, what is the use of all this ghastly, blasphemous, inhuman, braggartly lying?"

Here is where our favored Arthur Conan Doyle enters the scene! It was 4 days later, when he published a reply in the newspaper to Shaw's arguement.

"How a man could write with such looseness and levity of such an event at such a time passes all comprehension."

From the start, Doyle knows what he is writing about. He points out that although Shaw mentioned a lifeboat which contained 2 women and 10 men, the very next lifeboat contained 65 women out of 70 occupants. Doyle then counters Shaw's belittling talk of Captain Smith. He builds up the officers and the men of the orchestra which George Bernard Shaw had attacked. Arthur Conan Doyle's ended his letter by writing:

"But surely it is a pitiful sight to see a man of undoubted genius using his gifts in order to misrepresent and decry his own people, regardless of the fact that his words must add to the grief of those who have already had more than enough to bear."

The letters went on for anothor round, each man penning another reply and publishing it publicly in the newspaper. Reading the entire set of letters is quite fulfilling. You can read the complete letters online.

I don't know about you, but after finding these letters, and seeing where Sir Arthur Conan Doyle stood on such a subject, I am very much more enthralled with his valor and opinions than before.

What do you think about this particular episode that is tucked away in history?


{Note: My last 2 posts on the Titanic are coming on Monday & Tuesday. Check back on each of those days!}

Book Review: Basil of Baker Street

Basil of Baker Street

written by Eve Titus
illustrated by Paul Galdone
96 pages
originally published in 1958

"The Mystery of the Missing Twins could never have been solved by an ordinary detective."

(...that is the first sentence of the cutest mouse book ever... )


Basil is a mouse with a nose for solving problems, just like his hero, Sherlock Holmes. In this story, Basil and his comrade, "Dr. Dawson", are presented with The Mystery of the Missing Twins---a quaint storyline that all little children will love---and adults will too. The author, Eve Titus, so clearly depicts the true Holmes through Basil's demeanor, thinking patterns, and mindset. A story just can't get any better than a mouse who learned his skill of deducting by listening at the very feet of Sherlock Holmes!


Along with Basil and Dr. Dawson, there is also their "mousekeeper" who's name is "Mrs. Judson". They live in a mouse village called---well, the village name is so cute and Holmes related, but I'll let you find out the name for yourself.

This is a book I wish I would have known about years ago, so that it could have been a childhood favorite growing up. At least I have found it now. The lovely story and the delightful illustrations of this vintage book create something to cherish. If you feel silly getting the book from your library, then just grab a younger sibling and read it to them. Besides you never know what little ones you may be able to start on the trail of Mr. Holmes himself.

Basil of Baker Street is the most adorable detective story... I mean, what other detective could console a distressed mother whose children are lost, by saying: "I can offer you only crumbs of comfort." Yes, just what a mouse should say!


The book was first published in 1958 and has gone through many editions since then. If you like old vintage books, with charming illustrations, I'm pretty sure you'd like this one.


The Author: Eve Titus was an American children's author, born in 1922. She wrote at least twenty books in her lifetime---five of which are about Basil, the mouse.

Sharing Our Bookshelves {July 2011}

What's on your bookshelf right now?

Since June's "Sharing Our Bookshelves" post, I've read quite a bit myself.
To share what has recently passed through my own bookshelf:

The thrilling adventures of "Captain Blood" by Rafael Sabitini (1922). A simple doctor living in an Irish village is falsely accused of treason. As punishment, he is sent to a Barbados plantation as a slave. Thereafter, he makes his way into a pirate... yes, it all makes for a very exciting novel.

I visited 221B Baker Street, London, this past month. Twice, actually. This was while reading "Adventure of the Copper Beeches" and also "Silver Blaze"--both excellent Sherlock Holmes stories.

A trip to the library allowed me pick up a couple other books I've been wanting to read. "I am Lavina Cumming" by Susan Lowell was one. In short, it's about a young girl from a family of Scottish heritage, living in the Arizona desert, who can speak both English & Spanish. After moving to California, she experiences the 1906 San Fransisco earthquake.

"Rider in the Dark" by Victoria Holmes is a wonderful, suspenseful book (all about horses!) set in the 1700's of England. Complete book review will be coming soon on this one!

So, what is on your Summer Reading List? Are you tackling some thicker books during this school break?

If you have any new or recent book-related blog posts during the whole month of July, you are welcome to come link up below. Book reviews, summer reading plans, lists, pictures... you name it! Feel free to share anything about books on your blog, and link up here so others can read your posts.

"The Books Of Old" Reading Challenge

Hi Readers,
I'm excited to introduce something new that my friend Grace is doing. To get right on to the point, it is called "The Books of Old Reading Challenge." Sounds interesting already, no?



The simple instructions she gives are "The challenge is to pick 1 to 5 books written before the year 1950. List the books on your blog, then link up your post to the linky."

So, the challenge lasts through the entire year of 2011. I already have lots of books I want to read this year... most of which are probably written before 1950... well, even written before 1900. Below I have put together my 5 books I definitely want to read. I look forward to checking each one off as I get to read it sometime.


1. Sign of Four by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1890)

2. The Story Girl by L.M. Montgomery (1911)

3. The Coral Island by R.M. Ballantyne (1857)

4. Rose in Bloom by Louisa May Alcott (1876)

5. Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes (1943)

What books will you choose to read
this year?


If you'd like to join the challenge, read the rules on Grace's blog (click on the links below), then come up with your book list. I'd like to know if anyone is going to participate!


The Books Of Old Reading Challenge:

Post One: Introduction & Rules

Post Two: Sign the Linky

Post Three: Grab a Blog Button

Bookish Look at 2010

How did you fare with your reading in 2010?

How many books did you accomplish?

My total came to 53, which is about as good as it gets. I love keeping track of the books I read in a notebook. It may be a small notebook, but as the years go by, it literally contains volumes.

With 2010 gone, I wanted to share my Top 10 Favorite Books that I read this past year. I'd also like to invite anyone else to do the same... because I'd love to see what your favorites were!

Here's my list (in randomized order)...

1. Greyfriars Bobby (Eleanor Atkinson)

2. Eight Cousins (Louisa May Alcott)

3. Kidnapped (Robert Louis Stevenson)

4. The Pursuit of Holiness (Jerry Bridges)

5. Far North (Will Hobbs)

6. Sarah Bishop (Scott O'Dell)

7. Power of Kindness for Teens (Guideposts)

8. Heart of Fire (Victoria Holmes)

9. Sherlock Holmes stories (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

10. A Dog Named Christmas (Greg Kincaid)

What were your favorite reads in 2010?

Arthur Conan Doyle .:. Charles Dickens .:. e-book downloads

Ever since I introduced the website of World eBook Fair on my blog last week, I've been busy collecting more of these wonderful free e-books, and saving them on my computer. So, after I finished Louisa May Alcott's books that I posted about last week, I then dived into a couple more authors. First, there is Arthur Conan Doyle (author of Sherlock Holmes stories... I found a ton of his other writings that I didn't even know existed!) and also I collected e-books from Charles Dickens.

What I have listed below is by far not the complete files that they have available at World eBook Fair for these authors. If you're interested in seeing more from these partiuclar authors, or any other favorite authors, then you should check it out on their website.

* * I would also like to mention about these e-books that I am linking to, I have never read these partiuclar stories and so I do not know if I truly recommend them. However, I am acquainted with other works by these authors.

Also, please note that if you're viewing this entry through a blog reader, you will have to visit my blog page to see the lists of books I have. If you click on the plus signs [+] in the boxes below, you can view the links to e-books I've downloaded from both of these authors. Feel free to download the files yourself, because they will only be available for free until August 4th.

Arthur Conan Doyle E-books [−] The Leather Funnel The New Catacomb The Captain of the Pole-Star The Great Shadow Beyond the City The Guards Came Through The Case of Oscar Slater The Croxley Master Crime of the Congo The Green Flag The Gully of Bluemansdyke A Princess of Mars The Last Galley Impressions Rodney Stone Danger! The Vital Message The Lost World The Mystery of Sasassa Valley The Disintegration Machine The Firm of Girdlestone The Mystery of Cloomber The Poison Belt The Refugees Through the Magic Door The White Company The Brazilian Cat The Ring of Thoth The Land Of Mist Micah Clarke The Tragedy of the Korosko The Lost Special

Charles Dickens E-books [−] Bleak House Great Expectations A Child's Dream of a Star Our Mutual Friend Master Humphrey’s Clock The Pickwick Papers The Old Curiosity Shop A Child’s History of England Sketches by Boz Nicholas Nickleby Little Dorrit