(Book #45) Michael Chabon - The Final Solution

'The Final Solution' was the first story of Michael Chabon's that I have read, and is probably his shortest. The story followed an unnamed aging detective in the 40's as he is pulled out of retirement to help solve a murder and find a missing German-code-speaking parrot. Shortly into the book, a thought came to me that perhaps this old detective fits the description of one Sherlock Holmes, and this added an interesting layer to what could have been a simple story; however I concede that the fact that I watched a Sherlock Holmes movie the night before and read a Holmes story a few months ago. We never really get a name for this "old man". I had a little trouble following the plot in some parts, which could have been due to Chabon's writing style or the choice to have a lot of similar characters in such a small story. Regardless the story was intriguing and had a nice little reveal at the end, like any good mystery should.

(Book #36) - Arthur Conan Doyle - The Hound of the Baskervilles

Arthur Conan Doyle's classic Sherlock Holmes mystery 'The Hound of the Baskervilles' was another book that I read via an application on my cell phone. The portability of this medium allows for flexibility in reading time but is still noticeably less tactile than a physical book. That being said, reading this one was an enjoyable story and gave me a taste of what a legitimate Sherlock Holmes mystery is like (this is the only one I have read). As one can probably expect, there is not much in terms of action in these stories until the climax towards the end, but there is a whole lot of talking and description of the thoughts that are going on in the heads of the protagonists, Holmes and Watson. They are the reader's constant and truly the only characters that can ever be trusted. The structure of this particular story was done in relatively creative ways, which were a surprise to me, knowing the period in which these were written over a century ago. This unique feel is probably why the Sherlock Holmes stories were set apart from many other detective mysteries of its time and is still drawn upon to this day as a source of inspiration. There are many movies, and also detective (or surly doctor) dramas on television, that owe a great deal to the structure, pacing and characters of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.