The Fourth Bear (Nursery Crime, Book 2)
by Jasper Fforde
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The Fourth Bear
By Jasper Fforde
In the town of Reading, Berkshire, England the local constabulary is immersed in the case of a missing journalist. Henrietta “Goldy” Hatchett, intrepid but fussy, reporter for a local paper was on the trail of a big story when her last informant was blown to bits in an unexplained explosion and she went missing. Her disappearance could have been a routine case but nothing is ever routine for Detective Inspector Jack Spratt of the Nursery Crime Divisio...more
By Jasper Fforde
In the town of Reading, Berkshire, England the local constabulary is immersed in the case of a missing journalist. Henrietta “Goldy” Hatchett, intrepid but fussy, reporter for a local paper was on the trail of a big story when her last informant was blown to bits in an unexplained explosion and she went missing. Her disappearance could have been a routine case but nothing is ever routine for Detective Inspector Jack Spratt of the Nursery Crime Divisio...more
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Read in September, 2008
So far, this is my favorite of the Jasper Fforde books. The wordplay and puns just keep on coming, but I also enjoyed the meta-fictional elements going on here. Storybook characters who know they're storybook characters (or, in Fforde's parlance, Persons of Dubious Reality), plot devices named and numbered, even comments on flat characters (the sadness of knowing you aren't fully developed) and jokes that are too much of a stretch.
As far as the Nursery Crimes go, this one is a beauty: the Gi...more
As far as the Nursery Crimes go, this one is a beauty: the Gi...more
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Read in September, 2008
The Fourth Bear is the second Nursery Crime book (the first one being The Big Over Easy). While set in the same "universe" as the popular Thursday Next series, in my opinion they just don't hold a candle to them.
Still, this is by no means a BAD book - it's still very good and I definitely enjoyed it considerably and would highly recommend it to those who enjoyed other works by Jasper Fforde.
The world is an alternate version of Great Britain in 2004. One where fictional ch...more
Still, this is by no means a BAD book - it's still very good and I definitely enjoyed it considerably and would highly recommend it to those who enjoyed other works by Jasper Fforde.
The world is an alternate version of Great Britain in 2004. One where fictional ch...more
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Read in March, 2008
recommends it for:
people with a sense of humor, literary enthusiasts
I can't say enough about Jasper Fforde's books. If you have never entered into this insane, fantastic world of Fforde, you need to run to the nearest bookstore or library and pick up one of his books, because they are some of the best things that I have ever read. The best book is The Well of Lost Plots, but the others are really good as well.
The thing that makes these books soooo good is that they are laugh-out-loud hilarious and there are SO many subtle nuisanced jokes that you have...more
The thing that makes these books soooo good is that they are laugh-out-loud hilarious and there are SO many subtle nuisanced jokes that you have...more
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Ah, Jasper. I am really a fan-for-life of his, pretty much no matter what he does, because his books are just so original, so clever and weird and funny and cool. I definitely don't like the Jack Spratt series as much as the Thursday Next novels, but what can you do. I'll still read anything he writes, no matter what (I think).
This book is particularly tongue-in-cheek and meta, with lots of nods by the characters to the silliness of the book, the author, and the reader. Which natural...more
This book is particularly tongue-in-cheek and meta, with lots of nods by the characters to the silliness of the book, the author, and the reader. Which natural...more
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Read in September, 2007
recommends it for:
People that can handle odd-ball stories
A very imaginative spin-off of your standard issue nursery rhymes! It has elements of Douglas Adams in that you just have to accept some extra-ordinary events and roll with the odd-ball logic of the whole thing. If you sit back and just enjoy the book, it's really rewarding. If you think too much about it, it looses its charm.
It's amazing that Fforde has woven so much detail into the characters that populate nursery rhymes. If someone told me about the concept of the book ahead of time, I'd ...more
It's amazing that Fforde has woven so much detail into the characters that populate nursery rhymes. If someone told me about the concept of the book ahead of time, I'd ...more
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Read in October, 2007
recommends it for:
Jasper Fforde Fans and Classics Readers
I've read every book by Jasper Fforde, and I absolutely love him as an author. I started with Thursday Next, and all but the most recent novel were absolutely amazing. It was very good. I was skeptical about his Nursery Crime series bc I don't like mystery/crime novels. I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed myself, and Fforde put as little of the crime genre into the book as possible.
This story is hilarious: cucular energy, PDR's, Punch and Judy marriage counseling, alien/human relationshi...more
This story is hilarious: cucular energy, PDR's, Punch and Judy marriage counseling, alien/human relationshi...more
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Read in May, 2008
recommends it for:
fans of puns and humor
In this second book in the Nursery Crimes series, the Nursery Crimes Division is once again in disfavor after the Red Riding Hood debacle. So when the Gingerbreadman, a heinous serial killer that Jack Spratt caught years ago, escapes from the criminally insane asylum where he has be incarcerated, the case is given to DCI David Copperfield instead. This leaves Jack Spratt to investigate the disappearance of Goldilocks while trying to avoid the mandated psychiatric evaluation his superiors have r...more
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Read in December, 2007
recommends it for:
anyone who can appreciate British humor
I really like Jasper Fforde's style of writing. He's deceptively clever with his writing, and I like he's take an age-old writing style (taking well-known fairy tales and giving them a contemporary twist) and given it a breath of fresh air. The main character in this particular series (this is the Nursery Crime series; he has another series called The Thursday Next that I've yet to read) is Jack Spratt (of the famed "could eat no fat"), who is a detective in the small town of Reading, ...more
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Read in July, 2007
recommends it for:
Nursery rhyme/mystery lovers :)
This is Fforde's second book in the Nursery Crimes series. The Big Over Easy (Humpty Dumpty) was first. I think that The Fourth Bear is better, though its good to have read that one first, and it was really good as well (3 stars). The same characters pop into the land that has been transformed since Thursday Next's time there in Fforde's Next series of books (of which the 5th book should be out this month). Jack Spratt is pretty much the same detective, taking crap all of the time, solving a...more
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Read in October, 2007
recommends it for:
girls and boys who like their porridge just right
Jack Spratt and his NCD (Nursery Crime Division) team must solve the murder of Goldilocks (in a politically-sensitive modern climate of bear activism and rampant ursism) while tracking down the escaped psycho-killer known as the Ginger Bread Man, all while Jack is under suspension and being outed as a PDR (a person of dubious reality) himself. Jack has a great new car he bought from dealer Dorian Gray that instantly repairs itself--as long as a certain painting remains intact.... Also not to be...more
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Read in July, 2007
recommends it for:
people who enjoy literature humor
Jasper Fforde is often compared to Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett and with good reason. His books are filled with "so funny I had to share this" moments.
"The Fourth Bear" is the second in the nursery crimes series. The premise for these books is that characters from nursery rhymes exist in the non-fictional world. For instance, one of the principle antagonists in this book is the Gingerbread Man (and while you may run, run as fast as you can, you won't catch him -- th...more
"The Fourth Bear" is the second in the nursery crimes series. The premise for these books is that characters from nursery rhymes exist in the non-fictional world. For instance, one of the principle antagonists in this book is the Gingerbread Man (and while you may run, run as fast as you can, you won't catch him -- th...more
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Read in January, 2008
"A form of wit, to which wise men stoop and fools aspire." Ambrose Bierce, _The Devil's Dictionary_
Every once and a while, I get really stressed, and the only thing that relaxes me is reading something funny and fluffy. Jasper Fforde delivers every time. If you hate puns, these books are not for you. I don't know which of Bierce's categories I fall into, but I love puns. I love the broad satire. I laugh aloud even when rereading Fforde's books.
The Fourth Bear follows Jack Sprat...more
Every once and a while, I get really stressed, and the only thing that relaxes me is reading something funny and fluffy. Jasper Fforde delivers every time. If you hate puns, these books are not for you. I don't know which of Bierce's categories I fall into, but I love puns. I love the broad satire. I laugh aloud even when rereading Fforde's books.
The Fourth Bear follows Jack Sprat...more
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Read in June, 2008
Another romp through the insane library that is Fforde's mind. I thought this one was overloaded with characters and criminal plots - Jack Spratt still has a ways to go before he catches up with Thursday Next (who I wager he'll meet before long, btw).
Fun stuff: The treatment of anthropomorphized bears and the "right to arm bears"; Dorian Gray, the used car salesman; gingerbread "Ginja" assassins; the payoff on p. 334 (of the hardcover edition) for all the cucumber stuff...more
Fun stuff: The treatment of anthropomorphized bears and the "right to arm bears"; Dorian Gray, the used car salesman; gingerbread "Ginja" assassins; the payoff on p. 334 (of the hardcover edition) for all the cucumber stuff...more
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Read in November, 2006
This is the second Nursery Crime book, the first being the hysterical The Big Over Easy. Jack Spratt and Mary Mary are back, this time investigating the suspicious death of Goldilocks on the grounds of SommeWorld, the new amusement park whose opening is beset with problems.
It looks like Goldilocks (an investigative journalist) was hot on a story of oatmeal quotas and bear rights. (And, of course, the debate over the right to arm bears.) The three bears were the last to see her alive-- which ...more
It looks like Goldilocks (an investigative journalist) was hot on a story of oatmeal quotas and bear rights. (And, of course, the debate over the right to arm bears.) The three bears were the last to see her alive-- which ...more
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Read in May, 2008
recommends it for:
everyone
This is the second of Jasper Fforde's Nursery Crime series, featuring detectives Jack Spratt and Mary Mary as they battle crime on the streets of Reading. If you've never read the Thursday Next books, then some aspects of this may leave you wondering what on earth is going on: essentially this all takes place in a not very good police thriller set in Reading, which has also been designated as a place where Nursery Rhyme char...more
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Read in April, 2008
recommends it for:
those fond of whimsy
A mystery set in a fantastical version of England in which fictional characters like Punch & Judy, Jack Spratt, Goldilocks, and Dorian Gray live alongside real human beings, and where honey, porridge, and marmalade are controlled substances because they're like drugs for bears. Plus there are aliens on the police force and theme parks that recreate the Battle of the Somme, which don't really fit into the literary/nursery rhyme theme, but which add to the more general theme of wackiness.
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Read in December, 2007
recommends it for:
literary and nursery rhyme allusion buffs
A brilliant detective story played out by well-known (and lesser known) nursery rhyme characters and other Persons of Dubious Reality, or PDRs. In the story, Detective Jack Spratt who eats no fat is seeking the murderer of one Henrietta Hatchett, aka Goldilocks. Fforde masterfully weaves a twisted tale of highly implausible high-tech deception in a world where reality is a dubious concept in and of itself, where aliens are constables and the Gingerbread Man is the most ruthless and maniacal kill...more
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This is the second in the Jack Spratt series, a follow-up from "The Big Easy". If you enjoyed that one, you should enjoy this as well. Fforde writes with an easy-to-read style and rhythm, something many American authors struggle to maintain, and his humour is of a witty, intelligent flavour.
Fun with nursery rhymes is not a new thing, but Fforde has already established mastery over it. Mix that Sam Spade detective genre into the typical "Monsterpiece Threatre" parody that w...more
Fun with nursery rhymes is not a new thing, but Fforde has already established mastery over it. Mix that Sam Spade detective genre into the typical "Monsterpiece Threatre" parody that w...more
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Read in December, 2007
So this was my first Jasper Fforde book. I was told that it may not be his best... and I would have to say, thank goodness, because it really took alot of effort for me to keep reading.
The begining was just a little too all over the place, Jack Spratt (who could eat no fat, his wife could eat no lean) and Mary Mary (quite contrary) are police officers in the the Nursery Crime Division of the force. The main story line doesnt exactly pick up and tie together until your nearly 2/3rds into the...more
The begining was just a little too all over the place, Jack Spratt (who could eat no fat, his wife could eat no lean) and Mary Mary (quite contrary) are police officers in the the Nursery Crime Division of the force. The main story line doesnt exactly pick up and tie together until your nearly 2/3rds into the...more
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