Klik op een omslag om naar Google Boeken te gaan.
Bezig met laden... Teller of Tales: The Life of Arthur Conan Doyle (1999)door Daniel Stashower
Edgar Award (204) Bezig met laden...
Meld je aan bij LibraryThing om erachter te komen of je dit boek goed zult vinden. Op dit moment geen Discussie gesprekken over dit boek. Reviewed by Roger Johnson, [District Messenger 198, 2000] The author is himself a novelist and knows how to tell a good story. And, let's face it, Conan Doyle's life is a good story. This is perhaps the most readable biography of him since John Dickson Carr's, and of course it pays proper attention to his literary career, neither downplaying nor over-emphasising his major achievement, Sherlock Holmes. In addition, the book acknowledges the central place of Spiritualism in Conan Doyle's later life, rather than trying to ignore it, as some have done. Alas, like all his predecessors since Pierre Nordon, Mr Stashower has been denied access to the Conan Doyle papers; until they are made available the definitive biography cannot be written. The best studies of Arthur Conan Doyle are the two that deal with specific periods of his earlier life: Owen Dudley Edwards' The Quest for Sherlock Holmes and Geoffrey Stavert's A Study in Southsea. These, of course, are necessarily incomplete. Meanwhile, Teller of Tales is an admirable account, very attractively presented, of a man who achieved remarkable things - the most remarkable being something he considered trivial. The author is himself a novelist and knows how to tell a good story. And, let's face it, Conan Doyle's life is a good story. This is perhaps the most readable biography of him since John Dickson Carr's, and of course it pays proper attention to his literary career, neither downplaying nor over-emphasising his major achievement, Sherlock Holmes. In addition, the book acknowledges the central place of Spiritualism in Conan Doyle's later life, rather than trying to ignore it, as some have done. Alas, like all his predecessors since Pierre Nordon, Mr Stashower has been denied access to the Conan Doyle papers; until they are made available the definitive biography cannot be written. The best studies of Arthur Conan Doyle are the two that deal with specific periods of his earlier life: Owen Dudley Edwards' The Quest for Sherlock Holmes and Geoffrey Stavert's A Study in Southsea. These, of course, are necessarily incomplete. Meanwhile, Teller of Tales is an admirable account, very attractively presented, of a man who achieved remarkable things - the most remarkable being something he considered trivial. Reviewed by: Roger Johnson, [District Messenger 198, 2000] geen besprekingen | voeg een bespreking toe
Prijzen
This biography examines the extraordinary life and strange contrasts of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the struggling provincial doctor who became the most popular storyteller of his age. From his youthful exploits aboard a whaling ship to his often stormy friendships with such figures as Harry Houdini and George Bernard Shaw, Arthur Conan Doyle lived a life as gripping as one of his own adventures. Exhaustively researched and elegantly written, Teller of Tales sets aside many myths and misconceptions to present a vivid portrait of the man behind the legend of Baker Street, with a particular emphasis on the Psychic Crusade that dominated his final years - the work that Conan Doyle himself felt to be "the most important thing in the world." Geen bibliotheekbeschrijvingen gevonden. |
Actuele discussiesGeenPopulaire omslagen
Google Books — Bezig met laden... GenresDewey Decimale Classificatie (DDC)823.8Literature English & Old English literatures English fiction Victorian period 1837-1900LC-classificatieWaarderingGemiddelde:
Ben jij dit?Word een LibraryThing Auteur. |
As it was the author's intention to emphasise the period in which Doyle's Spiritualist beliefs came to dominate his life, this biography may not be for those looking for a personification of the Great Detective. For balance, The Secret Life of Houdini by William Kalush and Larry Sloman is a cracking read, telling the story of how the escapologist and Doyle became first close friends, and then bitter enemies as Houdini carried out his crusade to expose fake (aren't they all?) Spiritualist mediums.
( )