This is interesting, if a bit icky. A ship full of colonists crash-lands on a mysterious planet. Two men and five or six women must learn to survive without technology, fight the native humanoids, and reproduce. The women turn into busy baby-makers, and it definitely gets creepy when the next generation rolls around. But one lesson to take from this is, even if you feel like you're the sole defender of your little world and have no time to do anything but fight for every meal, take the time to teach your kids what you know, or everything you've worked for will disappear.
A short story in the form of letters. As in other stories by this writer, the science fiction angle is a tool to explore politics and human nature -- in this case, how politicians and average people deal with the out-of-the-ordinary, making attempts to understand and then covering up what they don't. It's definitely an anthology/magazine piece, not terribly rip-roaring, and if you're not familiar with the major historical figures referenced in here, you will miss out on the slow buildup of surprise. But if you like alternate histories, this is a nice small piece to add to your library.
If you know Fitzgerald mainly from "The Great Gatsby," these early stories will fill in the picture -- they run from melodrama to fantasy to short, odd drama. "The Camel-Back" is a lighthearted love story; "May-Day" is its opposite, a three-part tragedy in high and low society, vividly reported. One or two of the magazine pieces are the worse for being 80 years out of context, but other stories, such as "The Lees of Happiness," have enduring heart.
This charming book is sweet but not too sweet. The backdrop of post-WWI England makes it easy to understand why these four British women would want to escape, and it lends depth to each woman's own story. (For instance, the two young women traveling alone are instantly assumed by everyone to be widows.) The bleak background makes the glorious scenes of Italy and the touch of magic realism very welcome. It's a page-turner -- take it on vacation or keep it for a sleepless night.
These lively stories in the Sherlock Holmes vein feature Max Carrados, the blind amateur detective. Like Holmes, Carrados makes a point of noticing what others don't, in his case precisely because, as he says, "I [have] no blundering, self-confident eyes to be hoodwinked." Instead he uses careful deduction, his four other senses, and the well-trained eye of his manservant, Parkinson. Carrados' friend Carlyle, a private investigator, serves as his Watson -- he is just dense enough to require an explanation of how Carrados has solved each crime. Four unusual cases take Carrados, Carlyle and Parkinson to well-drawn locations in and around London, including the uncrackable Lucas Street depository and Carrados' own luxurious study in Richmond, where he makes some of his most surprising deductions.
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