Sherlock Holmes reread: The Priory School
Oct. 8th, 2025 08:21 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
vivdunstanOnto another one, and this is one I couldn't remember at all, though I've read through the entire canon five or so times.
When I was so very surprised by this story that I couldn't remember, I wondered if it was one that hadn't been televised in the Jeremy Brett TV series. Its episodes often stick visually in my mind years on. But not only did I not remember it, but it *was* aired in the Jeremy Brett TV series in 1986. And I would have seen it.
The story is a rather sad tale of a young heir to a dukedom vanishing from school, with his family home nearby, all against the backdrop of a broken marriage. Holmes follows the clues, largely on the ground and following the geography, before finally uncovering what is going on. Coincidentally it's the second story in a row with cycling as a key element. Which I suppose was still a rather innovative technology at the time of publication.
Because the investigation is largely a case of following clues on the ground, this is one of the rare Sherlock Holmes stories that includes a map with the original publication, which was also reproduced in the ebook version I read. I have to say that I really struggled with the geography. As my neurological illness has progressed further I've had increasing problems visualising things in my head (though things recorded in there from the far distant past are fine), and that includes understanding how things relate to each other geographically. Even with the map to refer to, I was baffled by the descriptions of the various elements in the locale. So I just drifted along with Holmes and Watson as they followed the trail. And I just felt very disconnected.
Holmes does solve the mystery, of course. But I found it a frustrating ending. The boy's father, the Duke, has been phenomenally negligent in his decisions, as Holmes rightly berates him for. But there is no comeuppance for him, and we're left to supposedly be happy that the boy goes back into his care. And we're left to believe that the Duchess, estranged from her husband, will magically come back as well.
I know that Conan Doyle ranked this story highly. But I found it disappointing. Though a large part of that may be due to my very specific problems visualising a lot of the action.
When I was so very surprised by this story that I couldn't remember, I wondered if it was one that hadn't been televised in the Jeremy Brett TV series. Its episodes often stick visually in my mind years on. But not only did I not remember it, but it *was* aired in the Jeremy Brett TV series in 1986. And I would have seen it.
The story is a rather sad tale of a young heir to a dukedom vanishing from school, with his family home nearby, all against the backdrop of a broken marriage. Holmes follows the clues, largely on the ground and following the geography, before finally uncovering what is going on. Coincidentally it's the second story in a row with cycling as a key element. Which I suppose was still a rather innovative technology at the time of publication.
Because the investigation is largely a case of following clues on the ground, this is one of the rare Sherlock Holmes stories that includes a map with the original publication, which was also reproduced in the ebook version I read. I have to say that I really struggled with the geography. As my neurological illness has progressed further I've had increasing problems visualising things in my head (though things recorded in there from the far distant past are fine), and that includes understanding how things relate to each other geographically. Even with the map to refer to, I was baffled by the descriptions of the various elements in the locale. So I just drifted along with Holmes and Watson as they followed the trail. And I just felt very disconnected.
Holmes does solve the mystery, of course. But I found it a frustrating ending. The boy's father, the Duke, has been phenomenally negligent in his decisions, as Holmes rightly berates him for. But there is no comeuppance for him, and we're left to supposedly be happy that the boy goes back into his care. And we're left to believe that the Duchess, estranged from her husband, will magically come back as well.
I know that Conan Doyle ranked this story highly. But I found it disappointing. Though a large part of that may be due to my very specific problems visualising a lot of the action.
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Date: 2025-10-09 08:21 am (UTC)