Book Description
90-year-old General Fendman was definitely dead, but no one knew exactly when he had died -- and the time of death was the determining factor in a half-million-pound inheritance. Lord Peter Wimsey would need every bit of his amazing skills to unravel the mysteries of why the General's lapel was without a red poppy on Armistice Day, how the club's telephone was fixed without a repairman, and, most puzzling of all, why the great man's knee swung freely when the rest of him was stiff with rigor mortis. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (12)

Sayer's Opus magnus
I'm really into audiobook (and book) mysteries -- I've heard/read hundreds. This one is in my top five and I listen to it over and over. Magnificently performed, Lord Peter Wimsey is at his best here and the reader does a fine job. If you love a good Christie-type English mystery, leap on this one as fast as you can. I cannot say enough good about it.

Engaging and suspenseful mystery set in simpler more gracious times.
Lord Peter is at his best in this mystery novel which gives us 21st century dwellers a view of English post WWI culture, specifically the Men's club.In the process of untangling this convoluted mystery, Lord Peter touches on some of his own issues regarding his military service and some resulting psychological scars.

Despite all this, Lord Peter chases the criminal with class, wit and ridiculous humor.He never takes himself too seriously, and is always charming--even when the stessed out subjects of investigation lash out at him.

Lord Peter has two perennial sidekicks--Bunter, his perfect butler, and Parker, the police detective.Both of these men are excellent at their trade and balance Peter's ridiculously good humor with sedate and serious good sense.Peter is a brilliant intuitive which contrasts with his piercing deductive mind. Bunter has good insight into human character and Parker has dogged determination and the abilty to integrate diverse evidence.

Despite the sometimes dated language, Sayers has the knack of writing an engaging and suspenseful mystery as well as taking us back in time to simpler more gracious times.

The old club just isn't what it used to be
Lord Peter Wimsey has planned on spending a quiet Armistice Day, just stop by the Bellona Club, reminisce with some old friends and then a quiet memorial dinner.But since this is Lord Peter Wimsey, the aristoctratic amateur sleuth, (and this is a mystery novel) a death soon occurs.The deceased is old General Fentiman and since he is ninety his passing is rather sad but not surprising.Not at all the sort of thing to arouse Lord Peter's notice until the exact time of the old General's death becomes a matter of vital importance to his heirs, one of whom is a friend of Lord Peter.

As Wimsey looks deeper into the matter he becomes involved in the art world, a jilted lover, domestic tension and even receives a proposal.Of course he unravels the mysteries in the end, bringing the guilty to justice and protecting the innocent.

As always with this series the glimpses into Lord Peter's world are as entertaining as the mystery itself.We are treated to visits with Inspector Parker, Bunter, and Marjorie Phelps and if those names mean nothing to you, you would probably do better to start this series with one of the earlier books.For fans of the series this is a definite must read.

An unpleasantness that could have been more pleasing.
When an elderly gentleman, ensconced in a winged back leather chair close up to the fire and apparently reading the "Times", is found to be dead the word for this event, occurring as it does in a respectable London club in the 1920s, is "unpleasantness".When Lord Peter Wimsey investigates further and discovers that the death is actually murder, it is still not proper, in the Bellona Club, to abandon the euphemism "unpleasantness".Thus is established the tone and the subject of Dorothy L Sayers' fifth work of detective fiction, written in 1928.

Readers of "Golden Age" detective fiction will find the usual wit and polish in the writing and a central idea for a crime that derives from nice points of logic and a specialized knowledge of anatomy and medicine. Somehow these strengths, together with a preponderance of dialogue, also account for the book's weakness.It lacks atmosphere.After describing the opening scene in the Bellona Club with great care and effect, Miss Sayers rarely thereafter gives a thought to sketching in details of time, place, action or surroundings.

So this is one of Dorothy L Sayers' books that will always provide me with entertainment and rich enjoyment, while making me aware that it does not quite provide everything I ask of great detective fiction.

A death in the sitting room
This book shows the charming and dry British humor.The setting: an old austere British club in 1928.On Remembrance Day, three men are sitting down to lunch.One notices an old soldier sitting not far away.He has a newpaper in front of him and a drink to his side.He is quite dead, and so the Unpleasantness begins. Wonderful ... Read more

Book Description

One of the founding mothers of mystery, Dorothy Sayers first introduced the popular character Lord Peter Wimsey in 1923 with the publication of Whose Body? Over the next twenty years, more novels and short stories about the aristocratic amateur sleuth appeared, each one as cunningly written as the next.Now in single volume, here are all the Lord Peter Wimsey stories, a treasure for any mystery lover. From "The Fantastic Horror of the Cat in the Bag" to "The Image in the Mirror" and "Talboys," this collection is Lord Peter at his best -- and a true testament to the art of detective fiction.

Customer Reviews (14)

Lord Peter's Incomplete Stories
This product is misrepresented as the complete Lord Peter Wimsey Stories. This it is not! I originally bought it thinking it was a series of volumes including the full length novels of Lord Peter. It is in fact The Complete Short Stories .......
Having said all this it is worth having as it collects all the short stories in one volume. If you like Dorothy Sayers you will like these not so short stories which include some fascinating plots.

really good book
I love Peter Wimsey!The book was in great shape, it came quickly and I love it!

Wimsey Lite is Wimsey Good.
The creation of Dorothy Sayers in the first half of the 20th century, Lord Peter Wimsey rightly occupies a place of honor alongside Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot and Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes as one of the finest detectives in the murder mystery genre, in the traditional British mould.But whereas Holmes was principally renowned for his short stories, Wimsey is best known from Sayers' superb novels like "Clouds of Witness", "Murder Must Advertise", and "The Nine Tailors", and it is with these full-length stories that those unfamiliar with Wimsey should probably begin.But Wimsey fans will not want to miss an opportunity to meet the characters from his world that they've grown to love and appreciate make an appearance in the form of short stories.Sayers wrote several short story collections, and although they arguably lack the drama of the novel-length narratives, her sharp wit, terse style, articulate vocabulary, and wonderful characters are all evident.Her skill with wordplay is already evident in the deliciously verbose titles like "The Entertaining Episode of the Article in Question", "The Undignified Melodrama of the Bone of Contention", and "The Piscatorial Farce of the Stolen Stomach," all of which give clever details of the contents of each story.

This volume is comprehensive in reproducing all 21 Wimsey short stories, including the previously unpublished Talboys.Certainly there are some delightful stories among them. My favorite half-a-dozen or so stories include:
"The Unprincipled Affair of the Practical Joker" - Wimsey uses some sleight of hand to manipulate a game at cards, in order to blackmail a thief into returning stolen jewelry and a scandalous photograph.
"The Bibulous Business of a Matter of Taste" - On behalf of the government, Wimsey is commissioned to purchase a secret formula, but when two Lord Peters show up at the estate of the scientist concerned, Wimsey's skill in wine-tasting is necessary to uncover the imposter.
"The Adventurous Exploit of the Cave of Ali Baba" - Wimsey infiltrates a criminal organization of thieves in order to bring to justice the mastermind behind the secret society.
"The Image in the Mirror" - Wimsey is consulted by a man who suspects he is mad, since either he or someone identical to him is committing atrocious crimes.A mysterious tale with a doppelganger motif!
"The Incredible Elopement of Lord Peter Wimsey" - Wimsey again plays magician, this time in a remote and primitive community, to rescue a woman from being mistreated by her vengeful husband.
"In the Teeth of Evidence" - A short and immensely satisfying tale where Wimsey unravels the peculiar events leading to the death of a dentist who apparently died after his car caught fire in his garage.
"Striding Folly" - Can Wimsey solve the mystery surrounding the death of Mellilow's neighbour and chess-partner, Creech, when Mellilow's alibi is an unconvincing story about a complete stranger who played chess with him that evening instead of with Creech?

If the taste of these stories leaves you begging for more, you might next want to read "The Abominable History of the Man with Copper Fingers", "The Fantastic Horror of the Cat in the Bag", and "The Piscatorial Farce of the Stolen Stomach."The remaining stories are not as good, but might still prove rewarding and satisfying to the dedicated Wimsey fan.It has to be conceded that for those unfamiliar with Wimsey, it could take considerable effort to appreciate Wimsey-Lite, and given their brevity, many of these stories lack the complexity and satisfying twists of a typical Sayers murder mystery.But for Lord Peter Wimsey enthusiasts, the short stories of Wimsey-Lite are still thoroughly enjoyable! - GODLY GADFLY

ADelightfully Mysterious Book
The Lord Peter Wimsey stories are very imaginative. They show off Dorothy Sayers' knowledge of liturature and keep a nice sense of humour throughout. As a fan of Agatha Christie, I keep a critical eye on mysteries in general and I found these to be clever and interesting with conclusions that are not always wild but can keep the mystery-reader interested. Sayers does not succumb to the temptation to make her mysteries impossible-to-solve for the reader, but succeeds in throwing in some surprises.

Lord Peter and friends come out to play
For fans of LORD PETER novels the greatest problem has been that Sayers wrote so few novels.Fortunately she did write quite a few short stories which are all in this volume.We are treated to 21 more adventures with Peter, Bunter and many of his friends including Inspector Parker, the Dowager Duchess.Most of the stories are gems, particular personal favorites are: 'The Learned Adventure of the Dragon's Head' - featuring Peter's nephew; 'The Haunted Policeman' and 'Talboys' - both focusing on Peter's married life.

In addition to the mysteries themselves, challenging little puzzles complete with the wry humor found in the novels, fans of the series are given little glimpses into the other stories.Various situations and names that will appear in other works pop up giving devotees of the series a treasure hunt for repeated reads. ... Read more

Book Description
The stark naked body was lying in the tub. Not unusual for a proper bath, but highly irregular for murder -- especially witha pair of gold pince-nez deliberately perched before the sightless eyes. What's more, the face appeared to have been shaved after death. The police assumed that the victim was a prominent financier, but Lord Peter Wimsey, who dabbled in mystery detection as a hobby, knew better. In this, his first murder case, Lord Peter untangles the ghastly mystery of the corpse in the bath. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (27)

Great early Lord Peter Wimsey entry
In his first case, Lord Peter Wimsey rushes to help out a London innocent ("Poor Little Thipps"), when a dead body shows up in the unfortunate fellow's bathtub.

The plot thickens and no clear suspect jumps out to the reader in this one as the victim is nearly impossible to identify. Inspector Sugg, assigned to the case, becomes an additional burden for Wimsey as the former wants no part of amateur detectives.

A sub-plot, Inspector Parker (Wimsey's pal) is simultaneously investigating the disappearance of a prominent financier, which turns out not to be the body in the bathtub -- but Wimsey cannot let go of the idea that the crimes are connected. The inquest proceedings are a regular hoot as Inspector Sugg, a man who takes the "shotgun approach" to arresting people, begins to look like an idiot.

There's plenty of great atmosphere and good old aristocratic snobbery in this one. One of Sayers' best entries.

Accept no substitutes: Ian Carmichael is the ONLY person to read Lord Peter.
This is the unabridged audiobook of Lord Peter Wimsey's introduction, "Whose Body". Whatever you do, do NOT purchase any Lord Peter audiobooks unless they are read by Ian Carmichael. He is the perfect Lord Peter, and he reads all of the Lord Peter novels better than anyone else. It's a lot harder to find "Whose Body" than any of the others, especially if you're looking specifically for Ian Carmichael's version. But after listening to David Case and Roe Kendall, I've always returned to Ian Carmichael, no matter how hard it may be to find it.

"His clothes were kind of a rebuke to the world at large."
Whose Body? Sayers first Lord Peter Whimsey novel hints at the promise of later volumes in the series.Lord Peter is the aristocrat who took up amateur sleuthing as a distraction from shell shock he suffers from serving in WWI.He has an enormous intelligence, a knack for charming difficult people and a fussy rambling manner that some mistake for weakness.His other talents are piano playing, knowledge of ancient books and manuscripts, and an athletic physique disguised by his sartorial excellence.

In this volume there is a seemingly insolvable mystery, with a not too competent police inspector who doesn't seem to like Lord Peter very much.Shades of Sherlock Holmes Inspector Lestrade?Sayers is still putting together her writing style and comes out with florid phrases like "His long amiable face looked as if it had generated spontaneously from his top hat, as white maggots breed from Gorgonzola."However, Sayers undoubtedly has a mastery of the English language and Whose Body is a highly readable novel as well as a good mystery which sets the stage for Lord Peter to develop as a character.

Detecting with Sophisticated Nonchalance

Lord Peter Wimsey, one of the classic detectives of British mysteries, is introduced to the reader and the world in this 1923 whodunit.

Miss Dorothy L Sayers, who with grace and wisdom excelled in this genre, presents her amateur sleuth as one whose "...long, amiable face looked as if it had generated spontaneously from his top hat, as white maggots breed from Gorgonzola."

We are drawn into a murder investigation that will include a body in the bath and a dowager duchess -- the first, disposed of in someone else's flat, and the second being Lord Peter's mother.We meet Wimsey's faithful manservant Bunter (who is also his protector) and we learn some of the quirks and sterling virtues of Lord Peter's character.

Wimsey is Miss Sayers' beau ideal of manhood--with an intellect and style that seems a combination of the (then) Prince of Wales (Wimsey's look, bearing and college being the same as the future Duke of Windsor) and Fred Astaire.

When not collecting rare books and sipping vintage wine, he collects around himself rare suspects and metes out the draught of justice.A gentleman to the core, Oxford educated and a veteran of the Great War (which has left him the worse for wear) Wimsey is the epitome of sophisticated nonchalance.

Without giving anything away, I encourage you to look for the humanity of Lord Peter.How he struggles with the issue of mercy v. justice.It is ever-present in the Sayers oeuvre, especially in the denouement.

For this reason, and many others, you will like Wimsey.You will like the way Miss Sayers writes.You will want to read more of these Lord Peter mysteries and there are a number of excellent ones to read.

And then you will wish there were many, many more.

If you find this review helpful you might want to read some of my other reviews, including those on subjects ranging from biography to architecture, as well as religion and fiction.

Delightful.
I had forgotten how fun this is.Reflecting the social attitudes of English aristocracy at the time, yet still with the impact of WWI, Wimsey is an interesting character surrounded by a cast of excellent supporting players.It was a real treat to be re-introduced to this delightful series.If you've not read Dorothy Sayers, I recommend giving the series a try. ... Read more

Book Description
Murder is hardly the best way for Lord Peter and his bride, the famous mystery writer Harriet Vane, to start their honeymoon. It all begins when the former owner of their newly acquired estate is found quite nastily dead in the cellar. And what Lord Peter had hoped would be a very private and romantic stay in the country soon turns into a most baffling case, what with the misspelled "notise" to the milkman and the intriguing condition of the dead man -- not a spot of blood on his smashed skull and not a pence less than six hundred pounds in his pocket. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (20)

Sayers' third-best mystery
Others have covered the ground of the story itself pretty well so I'll try to add something new.
I liked "The Unpleasantness at the Belonna Club" and "Whose Body?" somewhat better than this title.... BUT this one is really still just a SUPER classic English murder mystery. The inclusion of Harriet Vane (mystery-writing wife of Lord Peter Wimsey), into the Wimsey series was, in my opinion, a big plus. She really gives Wimsey someone to play off of, in addition to the ever-present and loyal Bunter, Wimsey's astute right-hand man.
This work precedes "Thrones, Dominations," which was an incomplete manuscript by Sayers at the time of her death and was finished by Jill Paton Walsh, who did a superb job of tying up this worthwhile project. (I recommend that you read the two works sequentially!)
So, I highly recommend this fine mystery to all fans of the genre -- it's at least equivalent in pleasure value to Christie's "The Murder of Roger Ackroyd."

Worth your time.
This entry in the Lord Peter Whimsey/Harriet Vane series is a little unusual because it has more humor than usual.You get to see a more light hearted Lord Peter, at least until the murder.Agatha Christi concentrates a little more on the relations between Lord Peter and Harriet, starting just after thier engagement and continuing through the honeymoon.You will have to sit through a lot of letter and journal reading in the beginning, but it is worth wading through for the background.A delightful story.

The romantic conclusion of the series!
Lord Peter and Harriet Vane are married.In a series of letters we learn the details of the wedding and honeymoon.Due to the malicious meddling of Lord Peter's sister-in-law and the hounding of the press, the bride and groom decide at the last minute to be married in a small chapel in Oxford.Harriet has asked Lord Peter to buy her a beautiful and ancient farmhouse in the country where they decide to go for their honeymoon.

The adjustment to marring someone with money is a hurdle for Harriet.She buys him an expensive wedding gift that is just right, and with the last of her money she buys a gold designer wedding dress from Worth which suits her dark beauty perfectly. Lord Peter has made her independently wealthy but she has difficulty understanding the details.All that matters is that she has completely given her heart to Peter.

However, the honeymoon is not the quiet country idyll the Wimseys were longing for.The discovery of a body in the basement of their new home causes Lord Peter and Harriet to be swept up in a murder investigation and the press are once again at their door.While distracting, the investigation does not keep them from sharing many deep passionate moments.It does, however, cause them to confront difficulties in their personalities and temperaments.

Sayers writes with her usual wonderful characterizations and evocative style.The reader is transported to 1930's England, a simpler more elegant time.The intricacies of a grisly murder investigation throw into relief the charm of the simple life.Yet somehow this story has a more somber tone than the other Lord Peter mysteries, perhaps because it is the last book of the series.At any rate, once again Sayers delivers prime entertainment and an enchanting detective mystery, only this time Lord Peter is finally in a settled relationship with his beloved.

A Classic
Busman's Honeymoon is a classic which deserves to be read and reread for a long time to come. It's beautifully written--funny, sad and suspenseful.Peter Wimsey is an extremely sympathetic character.

A Love Story With Detective Interruptions
Summer 2004 Reading List - Mini Review

I was intrigued by the premise of this book:An accomplished detective and a famous mystery writer marry, only to discover a corpse in the cellar of their recently purchased home the day after their wedding.

This book is subtitled "A Love Story With Detective Interruptions" and lives up to that billing.I had not read any of the previous books in the Lord Peter Wimsey series but I did not find this an impediment.Sayers did a good job of making Busman's Honeymoon accesible as either a stand alone novel or part of her Wimsey/Vane story line.I so liked the characters that I am going to try to read previous installments in the series. ... Read more

Book Description
A fleeting killer's green mustache.A corpse clutching a note with misplaced vowels.A telephone with the unmistakable ring of death.A hopeful heir's dreams of fortune done in when nature beats him to the punch.A playwright's unwatered-down honor that is thicker than blood.

In each case, the murder baffles the local authorities.For his Lordship and the spirited salesman-sleuth Montague Egg, a corpse is an intriguing invitation to unravel the postmortem puzzles of fascinating falsehoods, mysterious motives and diabolical demises. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Grows on you, if you don't insist on Lord Peter
If you're only interested in short stories featuring Lord Peter, be advised that 1) this book only contains 2 Lord Peter stories, 2) the complete set of such short stories is available in the collection _Lord Peter_, and 3) that this book doesn't overlap with _Lord Peter Views the Body_, _Hangman's Holiday_, or _Striding Folly_ (which together contain the stories making up _Lord Peter_).

The Wimsey stories in this volume are not Sayers' best, but if you give the other stories herein a chance, the book pulls its weight.

No one has to date assembled a collection featuring only Montague Egg, partly because there are so few stories featuring him (5 appear in this volume). Monty is a traveling salesman for Plummett & Rose (fine wines and spirits). Sayers had definite opinions about making sure that amateur sleuths had legitimate reasons to travel, meet the necessary people (what better person to visit the local pub?), and so on.

The remaining 10 stories feature neither major character. Sayers liked to have fun with the conventional formula of a detective story; sometimes a death isn't murder, or a mystery doesn't involve a death. Sometimes nobody's guilty of anything, or (treason!) they actually get away with it.

"In the Teeth of the Evidence" - Wimsey's dentist has been called upon to identify one of his predecessor's patients from dental work - a fellow dentist found dead in the charred remains of his car. Wimsey comes along, never having had a corpse-in-blazing-garage case before.

"Absolutely Elsewhere" - Wimsey and Parker are up against what appears to be a cast-iron alibi.

"A Shot at Goal" - The head of the local soccer committee (a big man at the local factory) is found with his head beaten in after being called away from the pub where Monty had been trying out his sales pitch. One is spoilt for choice for motive here.

"Dirt Cheap" - Monty and his fellow traveling salesman are stuck at the Griffin, since their usual hotel has had a fire; it's no surprise that Pringle (after his heavy meal of bad food) should be making noises in the night, enough to wake Monty next door. But the next morning he finds Pringle dead and robbed of his jewelry sample-case - the man he spoke to through the door in the night must have been the killer.

"Bitter Almonds" - Upon hearing that an eccentric old customer has died suddenly in a nearby town, Monty attends the inquest - partly beccause the deceased was drinking one of Monty's products when he died.

"False Weight" - Monty is called on to identify the corpse of Wagstaffe, a traveling salesman for a jeweller's firm who had a wife in every other town on his route. The trick here isn't to find someone with a motive, but to find a solution that fits all the physical evidence in the bar where he died.

"The Professor's Manuscript" - A colleague, upon failing to sell soft drinks to the professor who just moved in, passes him along to Monty as a prospect. Monty makes the sale, but notices several incongruities about the elderly professor and his home. See if you can spot them before they're pointed out to you.

"The Milk-Bottles" - Hector Puncheon (a young reporter from the Lord Peter stories) thinks he's onto a hot story when a young couple disappears from their apartment and the milk-bottles begin piling up outside.

"Dilemma" - Everyone's heard the question: if you could have a million dollars by pushing a button and killing a stranger a thousand miles away, would you do it? In this case, a doctor had to choose between saving 1) a dead man's research on sleeping sickness or 2) a drunken butler on the night of a fire.

"An Arrow O'er the House" - Failed author Mr. Podd begins wracking his brain for flamboyant schemes to draw publishers' attention to his work (other than dismal rejection notices).

"Scrawns" - Susan took the job of house-parlourmaid at Scrawns without an interview, not expecting such a gloomy, run-down, deserted country house...

"Nebuchadnezzar" - This game is charades raised to about the 3rd power- act a word, whose initial letter, in turn, forms part of the final word. Markham, whose wife Jane died of gastroenteritis about 6 months ago, begins to brood while watching her old friends act out Jezebel (J), Adam (A), ...

"The Inspiration of Mr. Budd" - Mr. Budd, a skilled barber who is losing his struggle against the flashy establishment across the street, yearned for a chance at the evening paper's reward posted for help in catching a murderer. But how could he earn it against such a strong and brutal man, anyway?

"Blood Sacrifice" - The playwright hated what actor-manager Garrick Drury had done to his first professional sale, although it played to packed houses. His generous compensation merely meant that he had no leverage to protest the mutation of the script into an almost unrecognizable form, which was ruining his reputation among the Bloomsbury types he moved among. (If the playwright's character interests you, try Sayers' _Strong Poison_, whose artistic crowd produced similar unsaleable work, or _Gaudy Night_, where professional ethics have a major role in the story.)

"Suspicion" - Mr. Mummery has been very careful to stick to a health-food diet lately, since his stomach began playing him up. He and his wife had accepted their new and experienced cook as a gift from heaven, without checking up her references, but now he's feeling uneasy.

"The Leopard Lady" - As a Smith & Smith (Removals) story, the reader should come into this story aware that, unless a client turns nasty, nobody will be charged, let alone convicted, for the removal. In this instance, Tressidier stands as guardian and residuary legatee for his small nephew, but Mr. Smith knows just how much of Tressidier's own money was lost in the Megatherium crash and at the track. (They never approach anyone unless they're sure of him.)

"The Cyprian Cat" - The narrator is speaking to his defense counsel: "It's funny that one should be hanged for shooting at a cat." (A Cyprian cat is actually a tabby.) This story breaks the rules about not throwing in magical overtones. If you like it, you might consider Lovecraft's "The Rats in the Walls" or Howard's "The Hyena".

In The Teeth of the Evidence
This is one of my personal favorite Dorothy Sayers books although it always gives me the creeps whenever I read it ... Read more

Book Description
Today you hear it even from many well-meaning Christians: "It doesn't really matter what you believe, so long as you're sincere." These pages demonstrate that such a "doctrineless Christianity" is not merely impossible; it's dangerous. Indeed, argues author Dorothy L. Sayers, if Christians don't steep themselves in doctrine, then the Christian Faith - and the world outside the Faith - will descend into chaos. It's a surprising argument these days, but once you've finished these lucid and often witty pages, you'll agree with Sayers that dogma is no exercise in hair-splitting about insignificant matters; it's a vibrant window into thesplendor of God's truth, a window that each Christian soul needs. Doctrine is vital to your faith, to my faith, and even to the faith of the simplest believers. Each of us must make a stark choice: creed . . . or chaos! These pages show why there's no way you can avoid that choice - and they help you to choose wisely. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (13)

Choices, choices...
Dorothy Sayers, best known as the author of typically wonderful British mysteries, was also known in her lifetime as an engaging public speaker, and one of the topics she would speak about is the life of the church.A staunch and solid Anglican of Anglo-Catholic persuasion (read here, 'more Catholic than the Pope', in many respects), she in some ways shared a spotlight (and variously competed for the spotlight) with other such luminaries as C.S. Lewis.

This particular book, 'Creed or Chaos?' is a particular favourite of mine.Written in the 1940s, it is actually a compilation of pamphlets (or, perhaps more appropriately, tracts) that were issued along with her speaking engagements.This is a book of lectures, but these are no mere lectures.Sayers is a woman of wit and wisdom in addition to being a scathing and no-holds-barred critic of those things she finds deserving of critique.

There are seven essays in total, which deal with issues of art and culture, church and state, public and private morality, virtue, and more.The title of the collection comes from the fifth essay, 'Creed or Chaos?' in which Sayers argues for the necessity of strong dogma in the face of declining stability in the world.Watching the unfolding of events at the beginning of the second world war, after having lived through the aftermath of the first (which included the collapse of the old order in Russia), she lays part of the blame on the kind of touchy-feely Christianity that had come into vogue that was more concerned with feelings than with understanding and order.'The thing I am here to say to you is this: that it is worse than useless for Christians to talk about the importance of Christian morality, unless they are prepared to take their stand upon the fundamentals of Christian theology.It is fatal to let people suppose that Christianity is only a mode of feeling; it is vitally necessary to insist that it is first and foremost a rational explanation of the universe.'

Perhaps my favourite section of the entire collection comes from the fourth essay, 'The Dogma is the Drama'.In this, Sayers puts forward a catechism based upon popular conceptions and misconceptions of what Christianity and its attendant dogmatic points are, and suggests that, as misleading as her witty answers might be, they still bear remarkable relation to the way in which Christian orthodoxy is perceived, not only by those outside the dogmatic faith, but also those inside.

Sayer's play, 'The Zeal of Thy House', was high in her mind during several of these lectures.In her essay, 'Why Work?' she looks at the vocation of work and labour, spinning the question around from being 'should we work for the Lord?' to becoming 'how can our work be work for the Lord?'Any work, artfully done, can be sacred in this context.She has particular ire for those who insist on the moral or pietistic purity of those who should really be chosen for their work for their directly related skills.With regard to her own profession, she lists the virtues of the actors (being on time, knowing their lines, etc.) and states that only after such considerations were made would any attempt be made to find out the piety of the actors.'The worst religious films I ever saw were produced by a company which chose its staff exclusively for their piety,' she wrote.This excess of zeal with regard to the wrong aspects led to films so bad they would never be a credit to Christianity, no matter how 'good' the people involved might be with regard to morality and piety.

Sayers is also rather forward for her time at discussing sex, claiming that the primary sin of her time was seen as sex (in that regard, not much has changed!); hence the title of the final essay, 'The Other Six Deadly Sins'.Here she looks at sin and morality with her dogmatic lens intact, but also explores the ways in which human nature ignores the inconvenient on a regular basis.

This is a wonderful book, short and to the point, witty and serious, and surprisingly relevant to the church and world today.

Too Close for Comfort
This collection of essays and speeches covers more ground than the title suggests.The first portion, on the importance of dogma in an authentically religious life, is passionate, persuasive, and predicts the coming battle between Christianity and paganism in Western culture.Interesting as this is, I found the second part of the book more intriguing still, when Sayers turns her attention to the significance of work and then to the Seven Deadly Sins.She draws a crucial distinction between work as an end in itself and work as a means to an end.Instead of treating our work as our gift to God, are we merely looking for a paycheck so we can get more stuff?Sayers exposes the social ills wrought by excessive materialism and insufficient attention to our moral responsibilities, and carries this theme further in her discussion of the deadly sins.This final chapter makes for an excellent examination of conscience as well as an embarrassing commentary on the crass materialism that pervades our culture, almost invisible in the absence of moral reflection.And above all, this book exhorts us to moral reflection.With remarkable power and insight, Sayers encourages us to ask, "What am I doing, and why am I doing it?"

I'll take Creed, thank you.
Like some of the other reviewers, I found that some of the essays in this book did wander off from the main question as presented in the book's title. Particularly the last three chapter's do this, focusing more on socio-economic issues rather than on the significance of dogma or creed in the church. These essays were tangentially related, however, as Sayers pointed out the need for Christianity's influence to be pervasive in all aspects of life. The weakest chapters in this volume were, nonetheless, the 5th and 6th chapters, titled "Strong Meat" and "Why Work?" However, the remainder of the book was very well written, and enjoyable to read.

Sayer's primary intent was to show how Christianity collapses without dogmas or creeds. She marvelously shows how dogma is not the dusty, dull, and boring thing that modern Christians often claim, but rather, that the very excitement and drama in Christianity is in the dogma! She uses the doctrine of the incarnation in particular to illustrate this, and throughout the book she interweaves the historic Apostle's, Nicene, and Athanasian Creeds to show their profound relevance and interest to even modern humanity. The problem, she asserts, is not that the dogma is dull, but that the church has not properly taught or shown its meaning. This has created another problem, which is that most unbelievers despise Christianity without even ever understanding the truly radical nature of what it teaches: that God entered the world in human flesh. When Christianity isn't clear and creedal in what it teaches to its own, it won't be able to present a clear and vital witness of Christ to the world.

The best chapter of the book is the one titled "Creed or Chaos?" In it Dorothy Sayers affirms that "it is absolutely impossible to teach Christianity without teaching Christian dogma" (33), and then proceeds to list several dogmas which are especially in need of being taught on account of their being misunderstood. She states the case for dogma very well in this chapter, but makes one particularly false statement. She says that "The Church of Rome alone has retained Her prestige because She puts theology in the foreground of Her teaching"(33). Rome is not alone in retaining her prestige or dogma. The glaring omissionis that the confessional bodies of the Lutheran church also place theology in the foreground of their teaching. There are those in Lutheranism wandering toward Chaos (and who would do well to read this book), but the true heart of Lutheranism is a boldly creedal faith. Even though Sayers ignores the Lutheran church, it is interesting to note that in the 6th chapter, on "Why Work?", she comes surprisingly close to the Lutheran understanding of what Scripture teaches regarding vocation.

Overall, Sayers' book issues a much-needed call to return to the orthodox creeds of Christianity, as this problem has continued and worsened in the church at large since she wrote these essays in the WWII era.

Don't Miss Dorothy L. Sayers
If I have a gripe about this book, it's that the cover picture and blurb would be more at home on a tabloid at the checkstand. There's an earlier version of this book with a somewhat better cover. For that matter, these essays are drawn from two collections published in Sayer's day, Unpopular Opinions and another one I forgot. The best essays reappeared some time back in a collection called Christian Letters to a Post-Christian World (I wonder why that title didn't sell?!), and then again in a series by MacMillian called The Whimsical Christian (catch the play on the name of her detective, Lord Peter Wimsey).

However you have to get them, try to read the best of these essays, "The Dogma is the Drama" and "And Telling You a Story" among them. The first one relates to her experiences while writing The Man Born to Be King, the first radio drama of the life of Jesus for the BBC. Long before Jesus Christ Superstar and the many movies tackling the subject, she was at the front lines of critical crossfire for updating the gospels to everyday Cockney England (the sort of updating that was common in the Middle Ages in Mystery plays). The second essay tells how she fell under the spell of another British writer, Charles W.S.Williams, and was so inspired by his writings on Dante that she taught herself Italian and translated the three volumes of The Divine Comedy (the third volume, Paradise, being completed by her student, Barbara Reynolds). Other essays touch on her trials as a mystery writer and playright, and the zillion other things she did (that no one seems to know about). Fans of her sleuth, Lord Peter, may enjoy tracking down these witty essays by the divine Dorothy L.

A Quality Read
This short work is well worth the time of any Christian.What exactly is our claim?Has the church complacently allowed a post-modern relativism to separate us from the great doctrines of the creeds?Why is modern Christianity so diverse and perverse?These are the critical questions Sayers attempts to answer.Her uncompromising passion for objective truth is refreshing and she conveys that righteous passion with eloquence.Again, this short work is well worth the time.The only caveat I will make to my enthusiastic approval of her book is it seems to end after the fourth chapter.Chapters five through seven are dedicated to things outside the primary concern of the work, embodied in the first four chapters.While the later are of some value as well, the first four chapters are the heart of the work and they are what I enthusiastically praise. ... Read more

Book Description
When Harriet Vane attends her Oxford reunion, known as the Gaudy, the prim academic setting is haunted by a rash of bizarre pranks: scrawled obscenities, burnt effigies, and poison-pen letters, including one that says, Ask your boyfriend with the title if he likes arsenic in his soup. Some of the notes threaten murder — and all are dreadful concoctions of a sick mind — yet in spite of their deplorable, criminal nature, the letters are perfectly worded. Soon, Harriet finds herself ensnared in a nightmare of romance and terror, with only the tiniest shreds of clues to challenge her powers of detection, and those of her paramour, Lord Peter Wimsey. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Superlative all the way!
Lord Peter Wimsey is the urbane, civilized, gourmand, bon vivant sleuth created by Dorothy L. Sayers in the 30s. Yet the Gaudy is not totally about him. It is more Harriet Vane's book. Peter comes in later and as they say saves the day.
What a stupendous achievement! Twice the length of most detective stories of its day, this book boasts of no murder and keeps the interest in the book unflagging till the end. How did Ms. Sayers manage it? Simply by her wonderful writing skill, her command of the English language (next to none-puts Christie to shame)and her characters. Long before the women's lib movement, this spunky character braved public opinion, police scrutiny and nearly the hangman's noose, without losing her inflappable belief in herself. True, it reflected the author's own life but a character that Gloria Steinem would have revered.
Oxford, Shrewsbury College, Sayers' own alma mater, come to life like no one city and institution in the entire history of mystery fiction. Yes, Harriet is the heroine but Oxford is the crown prince. That is what distinguishes this book. It is more realized as a novel not just a detective story. Sadly, though the quality of writing remains the same, the next and last Wimsey novel with Harriet: Busman's Honeymoon, is overwritten and meandering. But that shows that Ms. Sayers was human, too.
The narration is typically British which adds to the enjoyment of this wonderful book.

A Dithering Mess
If you have enjoyed other Peter Winsey mysteries, you will be disappointed. The "crime" is a poison pen writer at (Harriet's alma mater, as if she is not competent to investigate anything more serious)

Manners and language of another age form an intrusive barrier to following the germ of plot through many vagaries - a most unsatisfying foray, yet testament to the waning influence of the English upper class system, despite the author's clear snobbery regarding lower class persons and tiresome pontificating aboutthe 'role of women' . Having enjoyed other Sayers works, this one is a big null set.

The pleasure of the English language
It seems slow at first (compared with modern mysteries that seem start with a theft, murder or other violent action), but the use of the English language was so refreshing from today's norm that I continue to listen...and very glad that I did.Today's readers will probable find the character traits and social situations unrealistic -- no one argues so politely or maintains the same level of social manners in modern settings.If written by a more recent author it would probable be a psychological thriller with a romantic interest between the two main characters.As it is, the story line is lighter, the mystery is engaging and kept me guessing (all the clues are not provided until the end), yes there is a romantic interest between the two characters.I gave it 4 stars to be conservative but I'll revisit this story again, so it has my personal 5 star - it has my long term keeper rating.

Sayers at her best! And Ian Carmichael!
Gaudy Night is Sayers at her academic best.The more you read it, the more you get from it.The characters are delightful, and there is romance as well as detection.All this is brought to life by the expert narration of Ian Carmicheal.A treasure!

An Oxford reunion and ghostly murder
Dorothy L. Sayers' GAUDY NIGHTbenefits from Ian Carmichael's pointed production: his BBC background lending accent and tension to the story of an Oxford reunion which involves mystery writer Harriet in a case of ghostly murder. Tension evolves quickly as murder turns to mayhem in this thriller. ... Read more

Amazon.com
C.S. Lewis suggested that Dorothy Sayers's letters would one day be recognized as among the finest epistles produced in the 20th century. In fact, this first volume, covering the years from Sayers's early childhood to the later years of personal tragedy and literary triumph, shows a broad-ranging talent and reveals a rich life full of language study, poetry, and books.

Barbara Reynolds, author of the celebrated Dorothy L. Sayers: Her Life and Soul, has selected a cross section of letters to represent the full spectrum of Sayers's expressions and emotions. Most troubling are those desperate letters to John Cournos, the novelist's lover and the man who ultimately jilted her. Also fascinating are her notes to her illegitimate son John Anthony (fathered by Bill White, a "car salesman and motor engineer"), messages expressing deep love that are, simultaneously, touched with the restraint of a mother held distant by social convention. Beyond these very personal moments, however, one traces the budding and then flowering of a literary career. Sayers's years at Oxford and after are peppered with references to her reading, snippets of her writing, and records of her travels in France and elsewhere. As P.D. James writes in the preface to the volume: "by the end of 1936, when this volume ends ... she could look back on half-a-lifetime of courageous living and ultimate achievement.... The enjoyment with which I read this first volume of letters is matched only by my happy expectation of pleasure to come." --Patrick O'Kelley ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

A Lady of Letters . . .
As Baroness P. D. James states in her preface to this engrossing book, "we have what is in effect an epistolary autobiography" of the young Dorothy L. Sayers, from age five to forty-three, when the authorbecame the household word that she is today. (Later letters comprise volumetwo.)

The earliest letters are sprinkled with references to poems, playsor short stories that she had written, in any-or all-of the four languagesat her command (English, French, German and Latin.) She fell madly in lovewith the theatre, not to mention the leading men of the era. Before shereached the age of thirteen, she had read (in the original French)TheThree Musketeers, and from that time on, referred to her familiy andassorted locations by their assigned names from the book. She took forherself the identity of Athos. At eighteen, her headmistress announced thatDorothy had come top in all England in the Cambridge Higher LocalExaminations with distinction in French and spoken German. The followingyear she entered Somerville College at Oxford.

Men as men didn't enterher life until she had completed Oxford. She fell in love only once, butthey couldn't marry due to multiple differences in values. Subsequently,she had a short-lived affair with another man, who was the father of heronly child, a son raised by Dorothy's cousin. Their roles were reversed inthe boy's life; the cousin was his 'Mum' and Dorothy his aunt.Not untilafter her death did the truth come out.

These letters bring to vivid lifethe enigma who was known world-wide as the creator of Lord Peter Wimsey,the perfect foil.She couldn't afford a luxurious flat, a Daimler, or anAxminster carpet; she could, however, provide them for Lord Peter. She madehim and his family and his possessions incredibly real for her millions ofreaders.

Any devotee of Lord Peter Wimsey will be exceedingly gratefulto Barbara Reynolds for her years of loving care in sorting through andediting these letters of one of the world's great novelists. We can butwait-patiently-for volume two, in order to learn how Dorothy wore herhard-earned and well-deserved fame. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

Good, but not the best
The greatest strength of Dorothy Sayers's translation of The Divine Comedy is its notes. Sayers considered this translation her finest work and spent years of her life on it, though she died before she could complete Paradise. Having read The Comedy dozens of times myself, along with many books on Dante and his work, I liked Sayers for her dedication, but her translation--and even her notes--has some problems.

The biggest flaw of the translation is that it's just not literal enough, due mainly to Sayers's attempt at rhyming. Dante invented terza rima ("threefold rhyme") for his Comedy, and trying to use the same rhyme in English is a noble effort but ultimately hopeless. She frequently strays from the original or, worse, obscures something very clear in the original so that she can fit the lines into her rhyme scheme. Her English is also littered all over with strange syntax and archaic words, some of which worked while others left me scratching my head and, in at least one case, laughing out loud.

But for all that, her translation is entertaining and still allows Dante to speak, if through an imperfect medium. There were some sections in which the wording and rhyme worked so well I was thrilled as I read it--most of the work, however, is not up to that standard.

As I said at the beginning, though, this translation's greatest strength is its notes. Sayers shows years of dedicated study in the introduction, notes, and appendices she prepared for this work. One of the most helpful parts of her work are the breakdowns of difficult sections, which she analyzes in the four levels of interpretation at which Dante wrote. These sections are very good and offered even a seasoned reader of Dante like me something to sink my teeth into.

Some of her notes are misguided or flawed, but the book is still worthwhile to the new student of Dante for the wealth of good information they contain. I give one star for the translation and three for the notes.

If the notes are not what you're after and you want to read something more literal the first time around, check out the Mark Musa translation, also available from Penguin Classics, or that of Anthony Esolen from the Modern Library.

Recommended.

Golden Oldies
First of all, a warning: the "Comedy" is a complex work, and we are constantly updating our understanding of it. However, once one has finished whatever annotated and/or translated version is currently at the apex of knowledge, it is well worth going back to Sayers. I would dare to say that this is one of the classic translations, one of the best from that phase of Dante studies (for example, though she is obviously tempted towards a Freudian reading, she actually tries to resist its more absurd results). Its funny how many Danteans still do not get beyond the Inferno...

Sayers Meets Dante:Interpreting the Poet's Voice...
This review relates to the volume 1 of Dante Alighieri's
-The Divine Comedy-, Hell; Translated by Dorothy L. Sayers,
Penguin Classics, 1949.346 pp.
Other reviewers have spoken to the perceived weaknesses
and problems with this particular translation and
volume, with Ms. Sayers' "Introduction" and "Notes."
Perhaps one should be warned before entering its portals,
as constructed by Ms. Sayers, that this is not an "easy"
Hell to assimilate.
Yet, at the beginning of her "Introduction," she presents
the offering in an inviting fashion: "The ideal way of
reading -The Divine Comedy- would be to start at the first
line and go straight through to the end, surrendering to
the vigour of the story-telling and the swift movement
of the verse, and not bothering about any historical
allusions or theological explanatios which do not occur
in the text itself. That is how Dante himself tackles
his subject."
Some readers may not find Ms. Sayers' translation to be
one that lends itself to "swift movement of the verse."
The value here, however, is the wealth of information
provided in both the "Introduction", the Notes, and
in the map drawings which clearly help the mind's eye
understand the "lay-out" of Hell as depicted by Dante.
The value of Ms. Sayer's "Introduction" is its clear
presentation of HER view of Dante, his work, his value,
his meaning, and his emphases.
She concentrates on the Images of Hell and on the Christian
doctrine implicit in the work.This translation is in
keeping with that emphasis, for it is structured,
somewhat restricted, and presents "Dante's" voice
as more attuned to the didactic and lecturing.Even the
voices of the denizens of Hell have the tones of
stern lesson-learning rather than evoking pity for
their failed virtue and blind human proclivities.
The problem with some readers, and some viewers of
Christianity, is trying to reconcile the idea of
stern, unrelenting, eternal Judgment and damnation
for sins with the idea of God's eternal Love, or as
Ms. Sayers translates the second tercet of Dante's
*terza rima* on the lintel of the entrance to Hell:
Justice Moved My Great Maker; God Eternal
Wrought Me: The Power, And The Unsearchably
High Wisdom, And The Primal Love Supernal.
Ms. Sayers will have no human shilly-shallying with
Dante's intent or the purpose of Hell.And that,
though it may appall some readers, is to the good;
for it forces the reader to confront whether or not
he or she accepts or does not the Christian doctrinal
views -- and helps the reader to understand the
serious nature of choosing one's faith and one's
religion, or not.
After each Canto, Ms. Sayers uses the same very
helpful devices for explaining the preceding Canto:
first, she discusses the main Images to be found in
that particular Canto in a very clear, full, doctrinal
way -- and then, she has the numbered notes which
explain allusions and phrases which Dante uses in
the work.
For instance, after Canto I, we find: "The Images.
-The Dark Wood- is the image of Sin or Error -- not so
much of any specific act of sin or intellectual perversion
as of that spiritual condition called "hardness of heart",
in which sinfulness has so taken possession of the soul as
to render it incapable of turning to God, or even knowing
which way to turn."Similarly, after Canto III, we find
this note concerning the phrase "the good of intellect":
"In the -Convivio- Dante quotes Aristotle as saying:
'truth is the good of the intellect'.What the lost souls
have lost is not the intellect itself, which still functions
mechanically, but the -good- of the intellect: i.e., the
knowledge of God, who is Truth."
This is an excellent edition for the scope of Ms. Sayers'
medieval scholarship and doctrinal insights.Though it
may be hard sledding for the tender-hearted.There
have always been several ways of seeing the road to
Hell -- in this version, once one strays from the
straight and narrow, there is only the crooked and
pit-full, not pitiful.
-- Robert Kilgore.

A readable translation with helpful notes and introduction
Having wanted to read Inferno for a long time, I was glad to find Dorothy Sayers' translation since I value her own writing.I'm no scholar, so I can't compare this critically to the numerous other translations available.I just come looking to enjoy reading and understanding great classic literature on occasion.It takes a great deal of background information to appreciate this work.The Divine Comedy can be examined from many different angles: Poetry, allegory, theology, a spiritual journey, a love story.Sayers' introduction and notes, and the diagrams and drawings in this book were a great help to me.Some may argue that the scholarship is a bit dated, but Sayers clearly loved The Divine Comedy and wanted her readers to appreciate it also.The result of her work was a very interesting reading experience for me, better than I expected.I particularly enjoyed the insights she incorporated into the notes from Charles Williams' book, The Figure of Beatrice.(Sayers dedicated her translation of The Divine Comedyto Williams.)The verse might make it a little more difficult to get the meaning until you get used to it, but I think it's worth the effort.Once I found a good reading pace, I didn't find the rhyming forced as some readers have.(It might seem that way if you look for it.)It must be a difficult thing to try to give readers of English the same experience that Dante's Italian readers had and I think that was Dorothy Sayers' goal.She got me interested enough to take seriously her claim that readers of Dante are cheating themselves if they stop after Inferno.On through Purgatory to Paradise ... It must only get better from here.

A very outdatedtranslation
Dorothy Sayers was a fine mystery author and a knowledgable scholar of medieval literature.And once upon a time, this *was* one of the best available translations in English.Times change, however, and new English translations have come along that do a far better job than Sayers' does.

The biggest problem with Sayers translation, in my humble opinion, is her attempt to preserve Dante's rhyme scheme. In her introduction,The fact of that matter is that Italian is a language in which rhymes are frequent, easy,and melodious.In English, having every other line rhyme just sounds cloying and contrived.It also makes the reading more difficult, because of the inverted syntax, archaic vocabulary, and awkward rhythmsand that Sayers has to use in order force the rhymes in there. Oh sure, the fact that she was able to it at all is impressive.But it still doesn't make for a palatable rendition Dante's supple language (which, even to modern Italians reads smoothly and vernacularly, and not at all awkward.)Those who really wantsome retention of Dante's rhymes would do far better with Robert Pinsky's translation (which uses 'soft rhymes' and doesn't force them when they won't fit).Alan Mandelbaum's and John Ciardi's translations are good too.

Another problem with Sayers edition are the notes.While, on the one hand, they can very helpful to a first-time reader, they are also outdated.If you want to know what Oxford scholars thought about Dante a half-century ago, Sayers notes are great for that. And I don't say that to be dismissive, those 1940's Oxford medievalists had a lot of very good things to say.However, the fact of the matter is that Dante studies-- and medieval scholarship have changed a lot in the past half-century-- and reading her notes is something like reading a half-century old textbook of American history.They leave out a lot of things that probably ought to be discussed.

An even bigger problem with the notes here, I think, is thatthe author too readily presents her notes as "The Truth" (with a capital "T") about the poem-- as if there were only one correct way to interpret it andits details. Her interpretations are often insightful, suggestive, and they will greatly help the first-time reader-- but they are so didactic in their style that they may overlyy contrain the reader'sfreedom of interpretation. It's more like she's trying to use her notes to tell you, "The poem means this", rather than using them to background information and context so that you can figure out what *you* think it means on your own.

And, at the risk of sounding like I'm "politically correct", the fact of the matter is that there also are some biases in her notes that, to me, seem rather glaring today.This is particularly evident where she explains why Dante places Mohammed in the part of Hell with the schismatics.Rather than simply pointing out that medieval Christians erroneously believed that Islam began from a schism within Christianity, Sayers uses the occasion to make a few denigrating comments about Islam (which she insists upon referring to as "Mohammedism").Again, I don't hold this against Sayers per se... She wrote this book among and for a coz y community of Oxford Christians over a half-century ago.... and it's naturally going to be show its colors in that regard.But, for us folks who are reading it today, in the 21st century, well...maybe the notes just need to be updated a bit.

Anyway, when all's said and done, Dante's work is masterful, and even Sayers' awkward translation and outdated notes can't completely conceal that.However, I really think readers would be better off sticking to the Ciardi, Mandelbaum, or Pinsky translations of the _Inferno_.(My preference is for the Pinksy, but to each his own...) ... Read more

Amazon.com
Fans of Dorothy L. Sayers's fictional hero, Lord Peter Wimsey, who are hoping for his creator's insights into his character, the writing of mysteries, or the creation of literature in general will find little to satisfy their curiosity in this second volume of Sayers's letters from 1937 to 1943. In fact, there's virtually no mention of novels, or the writing of them, since Sayers had pretty much traded in Lord Peter for religious commentary and the theater by 1937. The Letters of Dorothy L. Sayers contains a great deal of correspondence concerning theology, Sayers's efforts in the theater, and even some letters to her illegitimate son, John Anthony. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

From Wimsey to religion
Dorothy L Sayers was much more than a writer of detective novels. From the late 1930's until her death, she was also in great demand as a writer and speaker on religious issues. She wrote a series of radio plays on thelife of Christ called "The man born to be king",and thesensation caused by these made her into an instant "expert" onreligion in the eyes of the public and the media of the day. The lettersdealing with the writing and production of the plays are fascinating. Theuproar caused by an actor portraying Jesus was unbelievable (Christ hadn'tbeen portrayed on stage since Oliver Cromwell's time), and Sayers wasaccused of blasphemy because she used everyday language instead of only thewords of the Bible. There's very little about her detective novels inthis volume of letters,but I still found them full of interestinginsights into the life of a writer. Sayers' very distinctive voice comesthrough,and her letters to friends are lots of fun. Her joy atreceiving a lemon as a present during the war (unobtainable due torationing) is wonderful,as are her discussions with her husband on thebest way to use this treasure. A fascinating collection of letters fromone of my favourite writers. ... Read more

Book Description
In addition to the title story, in which a nightmare may hold a terrifying premonition, this collection includes "The Haunted Policeman," which features a house numbered thirteen on a street of even numbers; and "Talboys," in which one of Lord Peter's own children is accused of theft. Sayers, like Lord Peter, is at the peak of her powers in her final work. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Grand Collection of Posthumous Stories
At least in this edition you know what you're getting.I remember the old "New English Library" edition with the name of Dorothy Sayers emblazoned in huge letters, but Striding Folly was written in the tiny tiny type you see in the traditional Alice in Wonderland "Mouse's Tale," so tiny you couldn't help but think cynically that the publishers were pushing a product they didn't really believe in on the strength of the author's name.I guess I could have known it was Striding Folly because of the huge intertwined picture of an obscenely round peach and a white rook, dissolving onto a disappearing and tilted chessboard, very evocative of the three stories in this lovely book.

I used to despise Sayers but I think my hatred should really have been saved for her fans, at least that portion of whom used to use her as a club with which to batter my beloved Agatha Christie.People like Ruth Rendell or PD James, always going on about how superior in every way Sayers was "as a writer."So blind to Christie's genius!Nowadays I can admit that Sayers is a supremely interesting writer, if no genius.Her talents lay in many directions, but what's most interesting about her was her ambition...Wanting to push the traditional Golden Age detective novel into "literary" (translation: middlebrow) directions; wanting later to make religious pageant drama the in thing in the West End stages of the 1930s and 1940s; and then translating Dante without ever really having an ear for poetry--well, not a natural one--it's always her applying herself so meticulously that's the real inspiration to me.She achieved none of her great goals, though she neared them.In the present volume, Striding Folly itself is a peculiar Wimsey tale in which the actual killers are never named--Wimsey just decsribes them in general terms, snaps his fingers, and says, when you find people who look like that, they'll be the culprits.

In "The Haunted Policeman," very reminiscent of Christie's earlier "The Dead Harlequin," Wimsey solves the case without ever leaving his boudoir.Good work man!Unfortunately the story is marred by an ugly word that the haunted policeman uses once or twice, casually, but filled with race contempt, and Wimsey seems either to approve of the policeman's sentiments or to collude with them in the interest of getting another case under his belt.No thanks!It's pretty ugly.

Talboys is another cute one, but after awhile I just lost my sympathies for Peter and Harriet as parents.Obviously little Bredon is a lost cause by age nine.He's doomed to grow up to be the first of the aristocratic Wimsey line (Peter was the 16th descendant of the original belted earl, so I suppose Bredon was the 17th) to be become a serial killer or sociopath, and to think it all started with an honest bit of Wimsey casuistry regarding, if nobody tells you not to steal a neighbor's peaches, is it disobedience or mere theft?

Lacks dramatic tension
Three short stories. In the first, the solution is given too early, in the second, the solution seems trite and improbable, and in the third, the crime isn't really serious enough to hold the reader's attention. Not up to her unusal standard.

dorothy sayers Striding Folly
This is a great rendition of some of Dorothy Sayers' short stories.The narrative is just right, and her humor comes through.

Excellent performance of a mixed bag of stories
I'm a fan of Dorothy Sayers and especially love her Lord Peter Wimsey stories, and so it's always nice to find a new way to enjoy them. Ian Carmichael richly deserves the raves he has received for his performance here. His narrative was quite easy to listen to, and the voices he gave the characters seemed appropriate and not exaggerated or affected. He brought some beloved characters to aural life, and I could have listened for a lot longer than the relatively brief length of this pair of CDs.

If there's a drawback here, it's the actual stories that were chosen for this set. Without giving anything away (for the sake of mystery-lovers who may not be familiar with the outcome of the mysteries here), I'll note that I've always found "Striding Folly" and "The Haunted Policeman" among the more unsatisfying Wimsey stories. The first one seems to end well short of a proper finish, while the second, told mostly through a policeman's recollections to Lord Peter, violates the old writers' rule about "show them, don't tell them." These weaknesses are somewhat balanced out, however, by merits and pure charm of "Talboys," which I understand was Sayers' final Lord Peter story. Like the novel "Busman's Honeymoon," this story gives the reader a close look at his lordship's private life as well as his mystery-solving skills. Seeing him amid his family this way is a wonderful final image for this popular sleuth.

The final adventures of Lord Peter
This unabridged audio edition is read by Ian Carmichael, who portrayed Lord Peter in quite a few BBC TV adaptations in the 1970s, such as _The Nine Tailors_, although not _Strong Poison_ or the other stories of Lord Peter's courtship of Harriet Vane, which were portrayed on TV by Edward Petherbridge. Both men are excellent narrators, in any case, with a fine command of accents, so any reading by either of them is good. These 3 stories otherwise appear only in the omnibus collection of all the Wimsey stories, _Lord Peter_.

"Striding Folly" - When Mr. Creech bought the Striding property on the death of the old squire, only Mr. Mellilow really accepted him - believing that Creech meant well despite his unfortunate manner, and happy that Creech could give him a weekly game of chess. Then Creech proposed to sell much of Striding to the electric company and bring in development -"which, to Mr. Mellilow, was another name for the Devil." Soon after breaking the news to Mellilow, Creech failed to turn up for their game - but a stranger did, leaving him with an alibi for the murder of Creech that no one would believe, except that friend of the Chief Constable's...

"The Haunted Policeman" - Occurs after _Thrones, Dominations_, and opens just as Lord Peter is being presented with his first-born son, as yet unnamed in this story. Poor old Peter has had the fright of his life, although Harriet was never in any danger, so he's too keyed up to sleep, and is standing on his own front doorstep smoking at 3 in the morning when a young constable, looking very distressed, passes by.

"Talboys" - The last Lord Peter story, with a 'crime' suitable to the small-town setting. The boy born in the previous story, Bredon (one of Peter's middle names), opens the story with a confession: he just took some of the peaches one of the neighbours was preparing to show. (He thought he'd better confess quick before more serious retribution caught up with him, but the neighbour wasn't much upset). A very tiresome spinster who was wished on the household as a guest by the Duchess takes the opportunity to tell Peter and Harriet how they're raising their 3 young sons in the wrong way, after watching Peter handle the incident. Bredon has sense enough not to value her championship - for one thing, in the Wimsey household, when a kid is punished that's the end of the matter.

Soon afterward, when the owner of the peaches drops by a second time to report that *all* of them have now been stolen off his tree, the Wimseys take Bredon's word that he didn't do it (although the spinster assumes he's lying). Peter takes on the investigation not out of any doubt, but because the peach-owner is an old friend and it's an interesting little problem that's fallen into his lap. ... Read more

Book Description
Lord Peter Wimsey's enduring presence and popularity are a tribute to his creator, Dorothy L. Sayers. In this book, McGregor and Lewis explore how Sayers used her fictional hero to comment on, and come to terms with, the social upheaval of the time: world wars, the crumbling of the privileged aristocracy, the rise of democracy, and the expanding struggle of women for equality. Scholars of the Modern Age, fans of the mystery genre, and admirers of Sayers's fiction are sure to appreciate this incisive examination of the literary, social, and historical context of the author's most popular work. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Essential reading for the Wimsey fan
More than almost any other popular mystery sleuth, Lord Peter Wimsey was a man (and a character) who belonged to a specific era. When the hopeful optimism and sense of promise of the 1920s and early 30s were overshadowed by crisis after crisis and the growing specter of war, Lord Peter became a fish out of water, and so faded into well-deserved retirement.

So argue the authors of this fascinating book -- one that any Wimsey fan, or fan of English mysteries generally, should find most rewarding. There's actually quite a lot more to this title than the argument described above. It is, to various degrees, a biography of Dorothy L. Sayers, a dual biography of Lord Peter and Harriet Vane, a social history of England between the wars, an exercise in literary criticism, and an at-least-partial survey of the history of the mystery novel. That's a lot to pack into fewer than 250 pages, but the authors pull it off really well.

As befits a book with so much going on, there were several elements of it I found most interesting. These included the discussion of Lord Peter's development as a character and the difficulties Sayers had in plausibly marrying him off to Harriet; the impact of contemporary events on Sayers' fiction; and why (tied into that last item) Sayers didn't publish, or even work on, with one exception, any more Wimsey stories after 1936, even though he was still immensely popular.

One of the reasons Lord Peter was, and remains, so popular is that he is a well-rounded character, not simply a crime-solving machine like Sherlock Holmes (which, of course, hasn't affected Holmes' popularity either). I highly recommend "Conundrums for the Long Week-End" for anyone interested in understanding Lord Peter still further and recognizing how impressive Dorothy L. Sayers' accomplishment truly is.

(Which reminds me, if you want to know more about Lord Peter's era, I also strongly recommend "The Long Week-End: A Social History of Great Britain 1918-1939" by Robert Graves and Alan Hodge, a book which obviously influenced McGregor and Lewis, up to and including their choice of title.)

This Book Nominated for an Edgar Award
I agree that fans of the Wimsey novels will enjoy this book most, but I also think those interested in the period between the world wars, as well as those who like good biography will find much here. Mystery buffs who haven't read Sayers may find this book provides the motivation to do so. I particularly enjoyed the authors' discussion of how Sayers' Wimsey differs from Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes, and the reasons for these differences. It should also be noted that this book was just nominated by the Mystery Writers of America for a 2001 Edgar Award in the category of biography and literary criticism.

Good book if you're a Wimsey fan
If you're a fan of Dorothy L. Sayers' character, Lord Peter Wimsey, you will likely find this book interesting and enjoyable. The authors, both professors, look at the Wimsey series in light of what was happening in England at the time they were being written, and show how Sayers incorporated so much of her surroundings into these stories.

If you're not a Wimsey fan, then there is probably little point in reading this book. Although it is well-written, most of its meaning will probably be lost. ... Read more

Book Description
When Harriet Vane attends her Oxford reunion, known as the "Gaudy," the prim academic setting is haunted by a rash of bizarre pranks: scrawled obsentities, burnt effigies and poison-pen letters -- including one that says, "Ask your boyfriend with the title if he likes arsenic in his soup." Some of the notes threaten murder; all are perfectly ghastly; yet in spite of their scurrilous nature, all are perfectly worded. And Harriet finds herself ensnared in a nightmare of romance and terror, with only the tiniest shreds of clues to challenge her powers of detection, and those of her paramour, Lord Peter Wimsey. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (43)

Intelligent read but no mystery
Dorothy L. Sayers' "Gaudy Night" was a fun and intelligent read.The author's writing was exceptional, she creates strong descriptive atmosphere, and her character images are on par excellence.Nevertheless, many of the clues did not lead up to what I believe would classify this book as a mystery; even a quasi mystery.

Overall, I liked being introduced to Lord Peter Wimsey, even though he did not show up until I was three thirds through the novel.Moreover, each of the plethora of characters had a story in their own right.The book remained me of the mysteries on PBS that I love so much.

So why did I rate this four stars instead of five.Even though I found "Gaudy Night," something I could not put down, it did meander a bit.I believe the author could have cut some of the superficial dialogue which would have pruned the book by 100 pages.In addition, the conclusion to the supposed mystery was presented too quickly and was quite unsatisfying.However, if you like well-written novels, read this book