Mr. Holmes

To start, this is not a mystery story. It is a character study of Holmes as a human not the figure/trope of Conan-Doyle. As an exploration into the inner monologue of an aging introspective celebrity, it's beautiful. I found it moving and incredibly sad...a slice of life, a peek behind the curtain.

I am truly at a loss as to how to describe this book. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle meets Akira Kurosawa is probably the best description. But even that really doesn't begin to touch it.<br /><br />In "A Slight Trick of the Mind", Sherlock Holmes is 93 and his memory is failing.<br /><br />The book doesn't so much have a plot as an obsession with death... and bees.<br /><br />The narrative flits between Sherlock Holmes at home in Sussex, his recent trip to post- WWII Japan, and events of 1902 involving a married woman that he is mildly infatuated with.<br /><br />Only Sherlock Holmes stands out. The other characters are vapid and shadowy, and at times I found myself wondering if any of them were real, or if they were all just figments of a demented old man's imagination.<br /><br />There is no real mystery to be solved. The book is mostly just the meanderings of Holmes' mind in his twilight years.<br /><br />I shut the book when I had finished and thought "What the hell have I just read?" Pretty sure that's the first time I have come away from a novel completely bewildered.<br /><br />I do wonder how the hell they've managed to turn this novel into a script for the movie "Mr Holmes". There's nothing there to work with. It's all smoke and mirrors; mist and metaphors. I'm not sure I really want to find out.<br /><br />

any book about Sherlock Holmes absolutely I'm gonna read it

This book is set after WWII. Sherlock Holmes is in his 90s and suffering from Alzheimers and frailty. He lives with his maid, her young son, and his large collection of bees. <br /><br />When the story starts, he has just returned from his trip to Japan. <br /><br />There are three layers to this tale: <br /><br />1) The present, in which Sherlock is back in England with his maid, her son, and the bees.<br /><br />2) The recent past, in which Sherlock and his Japanese companion wander around Japan in search of "prickly ash," some sort of plant that allegedly increases longevity. <br /><br />3) The distant past, in which Sherlock in his prime solves the mystery of where his client's wife goes during the day. <br /><br />The three mysteries (one per timeline) are introduced from furthest past to most current, and are addressed (I wouldn't necessarily say "resolved," in some cases) in reverse order, with the furthest past case closed last. Each story is tragic in its own way, and one actually got me watered up. <br /><br />It's a well-written, interesting tale, starring the fabulous Sherlock, who has humbled and mellowed in his old age. We finally get to see his point of view, and the toll his life has taken on him. Recommended for Sherlock fans. And if you aren't thrilled with it, don't worry; the book is short.

Muchos son los autores que han recogido el testigo legado por Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, escribiendo aventuras sobre su eterno personaje como protagonista (unas con más acierto que otras, pero todas lejos del clásico). En <b>'Un sencillo truco mental'</b>, Mitch Cullin intenta ser más original y nos presenta a un Sherlock Holmes de 93 años, que lleva una vida tranquila en su hacienda de Sussex. Allí se dedica al cuidado de sus colmenas y a escribir, sobre las abejas, tratados de lógica y deducción, y antiguos casos. Su única compañía, aparte de las abejas, son su ama de llaves, joven viuda de guerra, y su hijo Roger, un chico de catorce años al que le apasiona el mundo de las abejas y que se convierte en una especie de discípulo de Holmes.<br /><br />La historia transcurre en tres frentes distintos. Por una parte, está el Holmes del presente (1947), el que vive en su granja. A pesar de los años que han pasado, sigue siendo un personaje famoso, que recibe constantes cartas de admiradores y gente que solicita su ayuda. De vez en cuando, incluso es acosado en su propia vivienda. Resulta curioso porque la gente tiene una imagen de Holmes que no se corresponde con la verdad. El bueno del doctor Watson, cuando redactaba sus aventuras, era dado a rellenar los huecos y a fantasear en exceso.<br /><br />Holmes acaba de regresar de un reciente viaje por extremo oriente. Este es el segundo frente de la novela. Holmes fue invitado a visitar Japón por un aficionado a la botánica con el que se lleva carteando desde hace tiempo. Ya en su casa, sigue teniendo frescos los recuerdos de este viaje y de las gentes que ha conocido; imágenes de un Japón que intenta sobrevivir a los desastres de la guerra, a las consecuencias de las Bombas.<br /><br />El tercer frente del libro tiene que ver con un antiguo caso que Holmes está escribiendo, y recordando. Se trata de un caso que le dejó un huella muy profunda. A principios de siglo, un hombre solicita la ayuda del gran detective. Piensa que su mujer ha caído bajo el influjo de una malvada mujer, una profesora que le da clases de música.<br /><br />Hay que tener claro que esta no es una novela de aventuras y detectives. Es la historia de un hombre que sufre los achaques de la edad, la historia de una mente brillante cuyo filo se está quedando romo. Es capaz de recordar los detalles más nimios de una caso de hace 50 años, pero no sabe qué hace cierto objeto en su bolsillo. Es por tanto, una reflexión sobre el paso del tiempo y todo lo que conlleva. Cullin humaniza al personaje en una novela bien escrita y original.

My first impression, upon finishing "A Slight Trick of the Mind," was "good heavens, that was terrible." I came to review the novel, fully prepared to give it a sound thrashing and a measly one star rating. <br /><br />While drafting my review, however, I realized that I made a mistake that colored my reading. I assumed that this Sherlock Holmes would be familiar to me. I've read all the stories, seen all the film and television adaptations. But this version of Holmes is not the detective I know - a brilliant man in his prime, solving mysteries and stunning us mere mortals with his flawless observation skills. This version of Holmes is well into his nineties, retired from crime-solving and the public eye. His mind is failing. The novel becomes more and more disjointed as it goes along - nothing feels right as the story progresses. The plot makes hardly any sense, and Holmes' characterization is strange and overly sentimental. I didn't like it - I still don't, but I think that's actually the intention. The story degrades in time with the degradation of Holmes' mind. It's not pleasant to read along as the once-luminous Sherlock Holmes succumbs to the mundane ailments of old age (hence the meager upgrade to two stars), but I think perhaps that was the writer's intention all along. <br />

I read this book for two reasons: I greatly enjoy Sherlock Holmes stories, and I heard that this story is going to be made into a movie starring Ian McKellen as Holmes. <br /><br />This story is mainly set 1947, in a cottage on the Southern slope of the Sussex Downs. There are two other stories also presented, that take place in the form of flashbacks - one set in post-WWII Japan, and one titled ‘The Glass Armonicist’, that took place when Holmes was still in his prime. Aside from ‘The Glass Armonicist’, these stories really don’t have much in the way of plot. The focus is on Holmes himself, who is ninety-three, retired, and living in a cottage in Sussex. He is kept company by his housekeeper and her 14-year old son Roger, who Holmes has taken on as a sort-of beekeeping apprentice. <br /><br />Holmes struggles with the emotions and grief brought on by the past. He is lonely, as Mrs Hudson, Watson and Mycroft have all passed away. He is also trying to come to terms with his failing mind and memory, as he struggles to remember and record the case of the ‘Glass Armonicist’. <br /><br />I found the story to be beautifully written. The writing itself made me feel as though I was in a fog as I read, which, combined with the switching back and forth between various memories and timelines, really added to the mood of Holmes current state of mind. <br /><br />I’m having trouble putting into words exactly how this book affected me, but it was certainly a very emotional experience, which involved at least two instances of tearing up. I am looking forward to seeing the screen adaptation!

#24 of 2021<br /><br />I really really wanted to love this book and therefore give it a higher rating since Sherlock is a beloved literary favourite.<br /><br />But I couldn't. <br /><br />There were times when I struggled through, wishing I can just finish it.<br />Some passages were lovely and almost beautiful in a certain sense. <br />The writing is superb, definitely. <br /><br />All in all, I liked it enough for 3 reluctant stars.

Unless it's about James Bond, my husband and I rarely go to a movie. But when I learned of the recently released <i>Mr. Holmes</i> starring wonderful actor Ian McKellen, I put it on my must-see list immediately. Not long afterward, I discovered this book, which is the basis for the movie - and in my rarely broken rule of book before movie, I got my hands on a copy. Now that I've finished with it, I'm doubly determined to see the movie and Mr. McKellen's performance - what a plum role this must be! <br /><br />Though relatively short at 272 pages, this isn't a book to be read quickly; there are simply too many details that would be missed by skimming. It begins in 1947 as Sherlock Holmes, now 93, is living at a farmhouse in Sussex, England, keeping bees and and claiming to "no longer crave" the bustle of London or Baker Street. He hasn't been in contact with his partner, Dr. John Watson, for a few years, and (as he does with most people), he keeps an emotional distance from his housekeeper, Mrs. Munro (played by Laura Linney in the movie). His does, however, take pleasure - more than he likes to admit - in teaching her son, Roger, to work with the bees.<br /><br />In his journal writings, Holmes takes pains to dispel what he believes to be myths about himself (largely conceived, he says, in Watson's writings of their adventures). Never, he insists, did he really wear a deerstalker, nor did he ever smoke a big pipe or call his partner by anything except his first name ("...he was John, simply John").<br /><br />Holmes recalls various cases and events from other times, trying hard to recall the details and pertinent facts (his greatest fear, he says, is the forgetfulness that has accompanied the aging process). The chapters skip around in time a bit, and it's a little hard to discern whether Holmes's musings are fact or fiction, real or dream - intentional, I'm guessing, so readers can share the character's uncertainty. In fact, almost from the beginning, I felt dogged by a feeling of sadness as Holmes struggles with the realization that his once-brilliant mind has lost some of its luster.<br /><br />Excellent book, with or without the movie.<br />

A Slight Trick of the Mind is a slow, delicate story that offers a plausible glimpse into the twilight years of one of fiction's greatest detectives. This book is neither a fast mover nor filled with unceasing action. With that said, this story has many interesting elements.<br /><br />There are actually three stories going on here: a present story, a memory, and a written account of a past investigation. All three stories are intertwined and bittersweet. <br /><br />The unassuming homage to a famous work of fiction by a famous Russian author is unexpected and, I hope, intentional. Will anyone else notice, or am I simply being fanciful? This is the only clue I will give.<br /><br />This story is enjoyable, melancholy, and thought provoking. Ah! the honeybees. They make up a society of hard workers and givers. We can all learn from their diligence and steadfastness. Their lives are purposeful and honey sweet, just as ours should be.<br /><br />Hats off to you Mitch Cullin. You have given me a unique view of Holmes that makes me love him even more.<br /><br />*** <br /><br />"Actually, it is amazing how much can be learned about people from the books they own."