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Dec 14, 2007

Kay rated it:

I give five stars sparingly, so I was torn between giving and "four" and a "five" here. Ultimately, though, when I considered that I'd put aside all other tasks one weekend to devote to finishing this book, I decided that this was five-star material.

The last book I'd read by Barnes, England, England was a bit of a disappointment -- it came off, it seemed to me, like second-rate Tom Sharpe. But this book was a different matter. I especially liked the way it unfo More...

3 comments like (6 people liked it)

Apr 04, 2011

Hayes rated it:

Beautifully written, the language kept me reading eagerly all the way through; however, this story is based on a true event in Arthur Conan Doyle's life and the ending, just like real-life endings, fizzled out. I wasn't really expecting a wrapped-up case like in a mystery novel, but I was left unsatisfied, wanting to know more.

Which might not be a bad thing. I have Arthur Conan Doyle: A Life in Letters which I will read a little sooner than I had anticipated to try to to remedy this.
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4 comments like (3 people liked it)

Oct 21, 2010

Ken-ichi rated it:

Old review from 2006

Way outside of my normal range of reading here, but hey, that's what the Christmas book stack is all about. Apparently it's a pseudohistorical novel about Arthur Conan Doyle, George Edalji, and the 'Great Wyrly Outrage' animal mutilation hearings. In turn-of-the-century Britain, they lacked the foresight to blame such things on aliens from outer space, so they instead turned their suspicions upon the home-grown variety.

I have this problem with most non- More...

1 comment like (3 people liked it)

Apr 16, 2009

Heidi rated it:

What is better, a so-so book with a great ending, or a good book with a disappointing one? The latter for me, but I was let down, after enjoying this story all the way through, to have it end with such a whimper. Later I read that the story was true all the way, which did make me more understanding. It is about a miscarriage of justice in the early 20th century. George, a young solicitor of Indian origin, is falsely accused of killing a slew of horses in his area, and convicted. His defens More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 28, 2008

Neil rated it:

I don't go for whodunnits so much, mostly because I have such a poor head for plot that by the time the mystery is revealed, I've long forgotten who these people are that are now being identified as the criminals. This piece of historical fiction is no different in that regard, but the mystery of who committed the crime is only a small part of what Barnes is trying to do.

The other topics that the book tackles--changing definitions of masculinity and honor in early 20th century Englan More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 03, 2008

Stephanie rated it:

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2 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 08, 2008

Steve rated it:

What a great premise for a work of historical fiction. Take a larger-than-life figure known to all, make him larger still, and overlay his story on top of one with little fame but deserving of more. The acclaimed character was Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who turned out to be even more intriguing than his detective stories would suggest. From early days in Mam’s kitchen listening to chivalric tales of adventure, to heroics in sports and at war, Arthur liked thinking of himself as an honorable knig More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jun 23, 2007

Trevor rated it:

I couldn't decide whether this book fell under the "loved it" or "it was amazing" category. I finally settled on "loved it" but only because I want to try (try) to keep my "it was amazing" books to an exclusive few. However, I must say that I was amazed by the book. Barnes writing was smooth and effortless to read. At the same time it was penetrating, and he could articulate feelings and contradictions with clarity.
The story was wonderful. It is More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jun 10, 2007

Maureeen rated it:

The novel reflects the reserve of the English people. Insights are profound, and there is serious philosophical reflection, but it is all understated. For this reason, this novel is excellent for both people looking for an entertaining read, and people who expect an intellectual stimulation. Irony and astute observation make for a novel that is often incredibly funny. Barnes renders the cahracters in an endearing manner, I as a reader found myself immensely concerned with their outcomes. This wi More...

1 comment like (3 people liked it)

Dec 25, 2007

Karl rated it:

Since I find all spiritualism either risible or of only historical interest, Barnes' attention to Doyle's spiritualist fervor transformed my affectionate interest for Doyle into disgust and impatience. But while watching yet another 'Christmas Carol' this holiday--since this is what one does with the in-laws--I realized the weirdness of early twentieth century English spiritualism loosened the syrupy anglophilic nostalgia of the holiday. It wasn't all carols and parlor games, unless you want to More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 29, 2008

Peter rated it:

Completely charming. I'm glad I didn't know this was historical fiction before I picked it up, because I never would have. I thought I hated historical fiction the way I thought I hated musicals, before I got dragged to see Stephen Sondheim's 'Into The Woods', which was ten kinds of excellent.

Anyway, great read. Tiny flaws - a few poorly-concealed chunks of historical research, and some anachronistic psychologizing - don't damage the central core of this book, which is pure old-sch More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 29, 2012

Karen rated it:

Arthur and George grow up worlds and miles apart in late nineteenth-century Britain: Arthur in shabby-genteel Edinburgh, George in the vicarage of a small Staffordshire village. Arthur becomes a doctor, and then a writer; George a solicitor in Birmingham. Arthur is to become one of the most famous men of his age, George remains in hardworking obscurity. But as the new century begins, they are brought together by a sequence of events which made sensational headlines at the time as The Great Wyrle More...

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Dec 08, 2011

علی rated it:

Arthur & George by Julian Barnes
The beginning is so fascinated by a pair of alternating biographies, on the one side, Arthur, a promising athlete and scholar and storyteller; on the other side, Geroge, a trained solicitor who become the victim of a miscarriage of justice, to a seven-year prison sentence. In some way, their different styles of Englishness in some way stand for their different visions of life.
For much of the book, Barnes cuts quickly between these two fates meti More...

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Nov 04, 2011

Michael rated it:

My first introduction to Julian Barnes was the vastly different, yet also compelling, “The History of the World in 10½ Chapters”. Though I quite enjoyed it (gave it four stars on this site), I never quite got around to reading anything else in his respectably large body of works. But this summer while holidaying in Europe (a turn of phrase intended to trick you into believing that I this is something I do often) I had the opportunity to find an autographed copy of Arthur & George and combined it More...

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Oct 30, 2011

Tony rated it:

ARTHUR & GEORGE. (2011). Julian Barnes. *****.
This is a marvelously written novel about two very different men, Arthur and George (duh). Arthur turns out to be Arthur Conan Doyle, and George is George Edalji. Do not be put off by the beginning of this novel, where the author fleshes out his two men using the see-saw technique that seems so popular these days. Once through this, the story can really begin. Basically, it is the tale of the righting of an injustice towards a man, Geor More...

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Aug 31, 2011

Alan rated it:

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May 12, 2011

Book Concierge rated it:

This novel is based on a true case in England that did, in fact, involve the two parties of the title – George Edalji, who was erroneously charged and convicted of a heinous crime, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who brought his fame, resources, deductive reasoning and tenacity to correcting a gross injustice.

Their stories are told in alternating chapters, giving the reader a clear background on each character – their similarities and differences. Edalji was the English-born son of a Par More...

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Feb 11, 2011

Tyler rated it:

George and Arthur are two men whose childhood experiences have led them down very different paths. George, an extremely introverted small town vicar's son, is doomed to forever be an outsider. Arthur - talented, athletic and supremely self-confident, almost by accident becomes one of his country's most famous writers. When George is arrested for a brutal and senseless crime the lives of both men intersect and are irrevocably changed.

Not a great deal can be said about the plot withou More...

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Dec 11, 2010

Monthly Book Group rated it:

Introducing the book, the proposer said it had been a difficult read for him, and at one stage he had doubted whether he would finish it. One reason for the difficulty in getting to grips with the book had been the feeling of incredulity at the character of George, and the unbelievable injustice which had happened to him. Only when 2/3rds through did the structure of the book make sense and where it was going become clearer. He was struck by the strong similarities of the challenges facing Arthu More...

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Oct 25, 2010

Judith rated it:

What a fascinating book this turned out to be! The "Arthur" in the title is none other than Arthur Conan Doyle, and the "George" a rather minor character in his life. However, the book is structured brilliantly, going back and forth between the lives of these two men from early childhood until their critical meeting and association about midway through their lives. Quite amazingly, the book is based on a real life story and utilizes letters and newspaper articles written a More...

5 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 10, 2010

Roland rated it:

In his acknowledgements, Barnes gives credit to many – the biggest credit should go to him, of course. The research he has conducted for this wonderful book provides him with a wealth of knowledge which informs the book subtly at most times. There are occasions when one feels there was a scrap of paper with information he had not used up to the point of writing a section and felt a pity to dismiss, but these are few and far between.
The story itself must have been a godsend for a writer as More...

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Dec 07, 2009

Charles rated it:

Of all the products of the Victorian imagination, Sherlock Holmes may be the most enduring. He not only begat countless progeny -- quirky sleuths and keen-eyed gumshoes of all ages, genders and ethnicities – but he also continues to fire the imaginations of writers who don't usually produce detective stories, such as Michael Chabon and Mitch Cullin, both of whom recently produced novels – Chabon's The Final Solution and Cullin's A Slight Trick of the Mind -- about an aged Holmes encountering the More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Nov 24, 2009

Margaret rated it:

In Arthur and George, Julian Barnes examines the confluence of the lives of two men: one, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, famous as the creator of Sherlock Holmes, the other an obscure (but equally historical) half-Indian solicitor, George Edalji. Barnes traces his protagonists’ lives in parallel narratives from childhood, showing George’s sheltered life with his parents, his education, and his beginnings as a solicitor, alongside Arthur’s bond with his family, his training as a doctor, and his unhappy More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Oct 13, 2009

Antoaneta rated it:

Книгата не успя да ме впечатли и не оправда очакванията, с които подходих към нея. А имах определени очаквания заради ето такива например откъси от публикации за стила на Джулиан Барнс и новата му книга: „Джулиан Барнс отдавна е признат за един от най-забележителните британски писатели. Запознатите с неговото творчество ще се насладят на оригиналността, остроумието и мъдростта на новата му книга за човешкото във всеки от нас, но в същото време “Артър и Джордж” несъмнено ще спечели на автора и х More...

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Jul 19, 2009

Sarah rated it:

I have really mixed feelings about this book which was short listed for the 2005 Man Booker Price. It makes a wonderful audio book. I was first introduced to it as an audio book read on Radio 4. Intrigued by what I had heard, I joined a book ring. It arrived last month and I've since then been struggling to read it even though I've already experienced the story in a different medium.

The problem I'm having with the book is that it lacks chapters in the conventional sense and the plot More...

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Apr 10, 2009

Ariana Deralte rated it:

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Feb 05, 2009

Bookmarks Magazine added it

Always the bridesmaid, never the bride; short-listed again for the 2005 Booker Prize (Barnes's third such honor), Barnes sets aside the postmodern tricks of his most famous works (Flaubert's Parrot; A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters) to write a fairly straightforward novel based on the famous 1906 Edalji case. It didn't win him the Booker, but Arthur & George has critics on this side of the Atlantic astir with praise. From his seamless narrative techniques to his "elegant prose"

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Dec 29, 2011

Chandler rated it:

When working on a jigsaw puzzle have you noticed how hard it is at the beginning of construction, it is unclear what the actual picture will turn into and as you approach the end the pieces fall into place quickly and clearly. This book is like that. Julian Barnes feeds you information on a "need to know" basis. All of sudden, you are illuminated!! Author is Sir Author Conan Dole, George is east indian...and little by little the pieces begin to fit and you are hitting yourself on t More...

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Oct 31, 2009

Mr Buchanan rated it:

Quintessentially English as a good pot of tea, Arthur & George can be sipped down pleasantly as it tips between its two protangonists and their very different lives. And what figure more English could one choose than Arthur Conan Doyle, creator and here it seems imitator, of the great Sherlock Holmes? The novel's based quite tightly on historical events and reads as if it's ideally designed to be enjoyed without too much prior knowledge, so I won't give too much away. Suffice to say that George More...

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Oct 17, 2009

Brian rated it:

A fantastic book and a real pleasure to read. Julian Barnes' language is extraordinary. Graceful without being ostentatious, intelligent without being pompous. Few people I've found write like he does. His short stories are brilliant, both for language and character, and he's able to write a robust novel and use a lot of his artistic talents in the process. Sir Arthur is a lovable extrovert, and George is highly sympathetic. With George, however, the author drops plenty of hints, clues, im More...

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