Publisher Description
“Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime” is a masterpiece of polished cynicism in which poison, explosive clocks, and finally murder forerun married bliss. Also included are “The Canterville Ghost,” “The Model Millionaire,” “The Young King,” “The Fisherman and His Soul,” “The Happy Prince,” “The Devoted Friend,” and “The Portrait of Mr. W. H.” These eight stories were produced in the heyday of Wilde’s career.
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"I was surprised when I discovered I hadn't read this set of Oscar Wilde's short stories. They're mordant and poignant, Wilde's own brand--and they reawakened my interest in one of the abiding mysteries about Wm. Shakespeare: Who inspired his Sonnets, which he dedicated to 'Mr W H'? Wilde's story is about a theory founded in Wilde's time by Thomas Tyrwhitt, which said that the Sonnets were dedicated to Willie Hughs or Hues. Tyrwhitt gathered the 'evidence' from the Sonnets alone. Young boys played females on stage at that time, so it's beyond reasonable doubt that a long succession of beautiful young men paraded through Shakespeare's life--a theory Wilde was pre-disposed to enjoy. The evidence, at least while you're reading of it in the story, is compelling. Sonnet 20, for instance makes sense of the poet's use of the words 'Will' and 'Hues'. It's a bit circular, but Mr W H was someone. Why not the 'fair youth'? Tyrwhitt's theory still enjoys some credibility, and it seems clear that Wilde believed it, or wanted to so much that he set all skepticism aside.
My other favorite is 'The Canterville Ghost'. Re-written today, would make a great kid's book. An American family buys a creepy old pile in England and confronts a particularly gruesome ghost that everyone tried to warn them about. The family suffers a number of confrontations, then take things into their own hands..."
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Anastasia (5 out of 5 stars)
About Oscar Wilde
Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) was born in Dublin. He won scholarships to both Trinity College, Dublin, and Magdalen College, Oxford. In 1875, he began publishing poetry in literary magazines, and in 1878, he won the coveted Newdigate Prize for English poetry. He had a reputation as a flamboyant wit and man-about-town. After his marriage to Constance Lloyd in 1884, he tried to establish himself as a writer, but with little initial success. However, his three volumes of short fiction, The Happy Prince, Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime, and A House of Pomegranates, together with his only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, gradually won him a reputation as a modern writer with an original talent. That reputation was confirmed and enhanced by the phenomenal success of his society comedies: Lady Windermere’s Fan, A Woman of No Importance, An Ideal Husband, and The Importance of Being Earnest, all performed on London’s West End stage between 1892 and 1895. In 1895, he was convicted of engaging in homosexual acts, which were then illegal, and sentenced to two years imprisonment with hard labor. He soon declared bankruptcy, and his property was auctioned off. In 1896, he lost legal custody of his children. When his mother died that same year, his wife Constance visited him at the jail to bring him the news. It was the last time they saw each other. In the years after his release, his health deteriorated. In November 1900, he died in Paris at the age of forty-six.
About the Narrators
Sir Derek Jacobi has had a long and distinguished career. He has toured in Becket and Uncle Vanya, and he received a Tony Award for his performance as Benedick in the RSC’s production of Much Ado about Nothing. His work in television includes the lead roles in Cadfael and I, Claudius, and his film credits include Henry V, Gosford Park, and Hamlet. His narrations have won him eleven Audiofile Earphones Awards.
Sir Derek Jacobi has had a long and distinguished career. He has toured in Becket and Uncle Vanya, and he received a Tony Award for his performance as Benedick in the RSC’s production of Much Ado about Nothing. His work in television includes the lead roles in Cadfael and I, Claudius, and his film credits include Henry V, Gosford Park, and Hamlet. His narrations have won him eleven Audiofile Earphones Awards.