Watching the detective

     I mentioned that Kate Summerscale's The Suspicions of Mr Whicher: Or the Murder at Road Hill House is on my book mountain just now and I hope to be moving it nearer the summit as soon as I can. Having just won the Samuel Johnson prize for non-fiction, it is featured in this article in today's paper, and as it is about not just one notorious crime but the beginnings of criminal detection and the man - written about by Dickens and Wilkie Collins - who became the model for detective fiction, I think it will be jumping my reading queue.

Comments

[Lyn Baines]

I loved this book, Karen. I read it in one long afternoon. I particularly enjoyed the way the author related the case to the literature of the time. The intrusion into the family's lives could be sadly pararelled (can't spell it!) all too often in today's world. The tabloids were just as bad in tbe 19th century, and the libel laws weren't as strict.

[Lisa]

I love books that contain background information for other books that I've read. This one sounds fascinating.

[Harriet]

Sounds brilliant -- and thanks for the link to the interesting article.

[Maureen]

I haven't got around to buying the book yet but I certainly intend to, having heard extracts on the radio a few weeks ago.