Arthur & George

I guess I can still call this “currently” reading. I've been reading it for months and had heard such great things about it. And so I kept slogging away because I keep thinking I'm going to enjoy it more. But that hasn't happened yet...don't know if I am going to keep going or not.

I picked this book up on a whim, as it served as bookshelf decor in the house I was staying at, along with plenty of other books stamped with something-or-other prize finalists. As such, I went into it blind, not reading the summary, or at least not properly. I didn't realize it was historical fiction until I was far too invested, something that served to the book's credit: quite an excellent dramatization with compelling prose if it took my two braincells reading the name Sherlock Holmes to put two and two together. The first half, or maybe first two quarters, left me quite entertained and wondering how the titular Arthur and George's paths would end up intersecting. I'm not familiar with the case this is based on - again, I didn't even realize this was historical fiction until way far in - and found the descriptions of it gripping and easily followed by those clueless, AKA me. The section describing trial proceedings is quite possibly my favorite in the entire book. George is an incredibly likeable protagonist, I found him charming and easy to root for, along with all of his family and what's described of his personal life. Of course, George is portrayed as this sort of perfect victim, one that Arthur is righteously offended on behalf of, so it's no surprise that he's lovely to read about. Where I feel this book falls flat is an over-emphasis on Doyle's personal life, teetering on the edge of melodrama for large parts of it. It's quite a shock to attentively turn pages after depictions of George's prison life, fully engrossed, to have to slog through Doyle's woe-is-me feelings about cheating on his dying wife. I think it does the book a disservice to focus so much on this, as plainly, it weighs down what's otherwise a good premise. This is not a book planting itself as Doyle's biography, it purports to be about him *and* George, but the inclusion of so much of his personal life as an adult pre-George is ill-fitting and a slog. Don't misunderstand, I understand why this is the case: Arthur just has far more about his life written and documented than someone faded into the annals of history like George, and I do feel like the author makes an attempt to keep the attention given to them mostly equal. It's a losing battle, and I commend the author for trying anyways. I also commend him for bringing George's name and story to the limelight, even if in a fictionalized version, and I do feel - again, as someone not familiar with the case - that he treats him with respect. Still, the last third or so of this book really is rather dull. The parts where Doyle's doing his sleuthing bring excitement immediately undercut by more feelings about his soon-to-be-wife. Still, mostly everything related to George and to Arthur *and* George is gripping and interesting, and I do think the ending scene was very powerful and good, as was the "where are they now" afterword. I read this for free in a day to kill time and it served excellently for this purpose.