In the High Peaks
















Wednesday, June 12, 2019

More Elizabeth George Mysteries and The Last of the Mohicans

Because I posted last Thursday, I feel the need to note an update on my reading before I get down to a "proper post." That may happen Friday at the earliest.

With a flourish and a hurrah, I finished Well-Schooled in Murder by Elizabeth George this morning, the #3 novel in the Lynley/Havers mystery series. This third title was every bit as extraordinarily excellent as the first two, for those who are interested. I must say to you personally, if you only viewed these mysteries via PBS or BBC, you owe yourself something very, very special by reading the first three novels in the series in print. I declare that George's novels do not translate well to television, because so very much, yes, so very much of her novels are what goes on in the characters' heads. In their thinking, which never makes it way to film.  I think it's time for a revival of Elizabeth George's early novels because they are so special. No one I know is writing mystery or police procedurals of this caliber today. No one. If you believe that there are those who are, I beg you, do please let me know.  It's true that George's novels took a tumble--I believe the worst tumble came after the publication of What Came before He Shot Her. George's fans revolted, utterly revolted at that novel that resulted in the murder of Lady Helen. Personally, I thought that that novel was a brilliant departure--brilliant, but her long-time fans saw otherwise.
I believe that George lost her footing for a time after that novel. Careless in Red, the next novel, was a disappointment to all. George picked up the pace after that, but most will agree that her earliest novels are the best.

About me and The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper,  published in 1826. I am a third of the way through this novel. It is more than a bit of a slog--I don't mind saying. I am thrilled by the descriptions of wilderness landscape--whitewater rivers, thickly greened wilderness, etc., because the action of this novel took place within 35 miles of my home. But the language is difficult--it is turgid. I checked to see when Pride  and Prejudice was published (1815). And the language of that ever-so-readable English  novel is nowhere near as contrived, nowhere near as muck-mired as The Last of the Mohicans. That is my pronouncement. And of course I'll happily finish Cooper's book, but really his style has me gasping for air at times.  In addition, there are the constant Indian battles and killings as the party tries to make their way to the safety of Fort William Henry.

In my next post, I'll write about the new books that are helping me survive The Last of the Mohicans!

14 comments:

  1. I've loved Elizabeth George ever since I read my first book ages ago.

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    1. Welcome, Mystica,
      I plan to read every one of Elizabeth George's books, including those for children, that are set on Whitbey (Whidbey?) Island off the Pacific Coast of Washington State. George lived on that island for many years, though not now.
      I hope to spend more time on your blog very soon!

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  2. I have been meaning to read Last of the Mohicans for some time. Interesting that the prose is so difficult. I guess that Cooper along with Washington Irving pretty much started American literature. As I recall Irving’s prose was fairly accessible.

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    1. Hi Brian,
      There were some American novelists writing prior to Cooper, but the one I'm thinking of, whose name I can't remember, was writing gothic novels. I think Cooper and Irving were celebrated for celebrating or encapsulating parts of the "American" Experience.

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  3. I'm not often defeated by a novel but Last of the Mohicans did it for me. Unreadable. One of the very rare occasions when the film is better than the book. I'm in awe that you plan to finish it.

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    1. Hi Cath,
      I'm interested to know that you wanted and tried to read The Last of the Mohicans. My heart thrilled to your descriptor, "Unreadable." Thank you!! Someone out there knows what I'm going through!
      The wilderness theme keeps me going, but the prose--the language--is so difficult to parse.
      The movie--will have to look that up, but didn't all the Indian hatcheting and all the fighting that goes on get boring after a while?
      I figure I can tolerate 30 pages a day, and it will end eventually, like a migraine headache. (And I don't have migraines, but the analogy seems appropriate.) I hope you are well and enjoying the garden!

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  4. Funny, I just wrote a bit about Elizabeth George on a post this week about police procedurals. You've written a really good summary of the series - it was at With No One as Witness that I stopped, just before the series turned. I probably read the bad reviews and didn't have the gumption to read the long books. But oh, the first half of that series was excellent! I remember trying to find the books, in order, at used books stores, and then loving getting immersed in the prose.

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    1. Ahh, I haven't read With No One as Witness--my previous reads of her books sort of hopped around. I have purchased the first three so I can read them again at some point, and I have a few others. I'll read them all, no matter what at some point.

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  5. Cooper is supposed to be DIFFICULT! I know few people who have enjoyed his novels and your review is very positive compared to some I've read. I do want to try him one day but he and Nathaniel Hawthorne make me apprehensive.

    Can't wait until your next post about new books!!

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    1. Hi Cleo,
      Yes, it's true I'm not enjoying it, but seeing as I'm more than halfway through as of today, I'll continue to dawdle and slog through it to the bitter end--my sacrifice for the Back to the Classics Challenge. I've enjoyed all the others I've read at least.
      We had to read The Scarlet Letter in the tenth grade. I did not like it. What kind of a message is that to a fifteen-year-old girl. Did not appreciate the message!
      Yes, I'll be posting this weekend.

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  6. I purposefully skipped What Came before He Shot Her because it isn't a mystery. For me, the serious tumble was Believing the Lie.

    But when she is good, she is really good. I don't know any current writers that compare but I like early E. George in the same way I like P.D. James mysteries. But you've probably read James already?

    I think Mark Twain also found Fenimore Cooper turgid and he was his contemporary!

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    1. Hi Ruthiella,
      How interesting--I don't know Believing the Lie, or not yet anyway. And oh, yes, very much so--my all-time favorite is P.D. James. I have read almost all of her novels, but I've saved one for this summer, Shroud of the Nightingale. I am collecting all of them because I am going to read every single one again. I tried looking online for a P.D. James Online Group aka "Fan Club," as there are for Agatha Christie, Jane Austen, etc., but alas, I couldn't find one. Yes, P.D. James is my all-time fave!

      I'm so glad that Mark Twain was less than admiring of Cooper. So interesting to know that! Yet Cooper was born in 1789 and Twain was born in 1835, so they were a little more than a generation apart. BUT--to your point well taken. The American public worshipped Cooper at the time Twain was writing his books. And do you suppose that Twain might have been rebelling against the American romanticism of Cooper's generation?? So glad you pointed this out.

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  7. I used to be a big George fan but I admit I stopped reading after she killed Lady Helen. It felt too manipulative of her readers after all we had been through. That was so long ago I don't recall what I thought of the actual book.

    I haven't plowed through The Last of the Mohicans although I did try when PBS aired a wonderful miniseries in the early 70s. I was very young and I didn't understand why Cora and Uncas couldn't have a HEA. Sara Donati's version of the wilderness is easier to take.

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  8. I had the same reaction as you described regarding Elizabeth George's books. The first book I did not like was Careless in Red, and I did try later books but they were too, too long. I actually liked What Came Before He Killed Her, but it was a difficult book to read.

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