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The Final Solution
The Final Solution: A Story of Detection | Michael Chabon
17 posts | 37 read | 15 to read
In the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, prose magician Michael Chabon conjured up the golden age of comic books -- intertwining history, legend, and storytelling verve. In The Final Solution, he has condensed his boundless vision to craft a short, suspenseful tale of compassion and wit that reimagines the classic nineteenth-century detective story. In deep retirement in the English country-side, an eighty-nine-year-old man, vaguely recollected by locals as a once-famous detective, is more concerned with his beekeeping than with his fellow man. Into his life wanders Linus Steinman, nine years old and mute, who has escaped from Nazi Germany with his sole companion: an African gray parrot. What is the meaning of the mysterious strings of German numbers the bird spews out -- a top-secret SS code? The keys to a series of Swiss bank accounts perhaps? Or something more sinister? Is the solution to this last case -- the real explanation of the mysterious boy and his parrot -- beyond even the reach of the once-famed sleuth? Subtle revelations lead the reader to a wrenching resolution. This brilliant homage, which won the 2004 Aga Khan Prize for fiction, is the work of a master storyteller at the height of his powers.
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review
sarahbellum
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Mehso-so

Chabon is so hit or miss for me. When I love his books, I LOVE them (Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay, Wonder Boys), but others feel so phoned in (Summerland and this one, unfortunately). This was somehow both overwritten and underdeveloped. Chabon had an aversion to using names (MC was never named), which made it difficult to figure out who was doing/saying what. Blessedly short.

My 3rd Sept #roll100 complete!

#dogsoflitsy

PuddleJumper You're doing great! 2y
Ruthiella I feel the same about Chabon. I didn‘t love C&K however. 2y
54 likes2 comments
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bookseller_cate
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Pickpick

Around the end of the Second World War, an octogenarian beekeeper is drawn into a case of murder and a missing African Grey parrot.

This was the first Chabon I ever read. On reread, it continues to be a lovely piece of pastiche, with a disconcerting peephole to our capacity for evil.

#lovesmesomechabon

23 likes2 stack adds
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The.Intentional.Reader
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A little hard to follow in a few parts but overall I enjoyed this one.

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pdever
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Pickpick

"A story of detection" in which the principal mystery goes undetected, but not unsolved. A charming novella. Chabon has been one of my favorites for the past several years.
This short book served asked an excellent counterpoint and complement to my light vacation reading this year.

bookseller_cate Love me some Chabon! I would highly recommend his essay collection, Maps and Legends. Super inspiring! (edited) 5y
pdever @bookseller_cate thanks for the recommendation. I will add it to my list. My favorite so far has been 5y
5 likes2 comments
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BooksMcD
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I love the illustrations in this book and how the words in the images foreshadow so delicately. Clever! 💙

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maggiereadsgood
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This short novella is fun and all but this cover is amazing. It needs to be recognized as such.

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BooksMcD
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Went back to work after the furlough and immediately got sick. 😷 Guess I‘m allergic to work! 😜 It‘s amazing how being sick can throw you off your game! Channeling my inner Mary Poppins and trying this app #Habitica which makes daily tasks and big projects feel like a game. Hopefully this‘ll help me get back on track with everything, reading included! I am very behind if I want to meet my reading goal this year 😮 #Ifeeltheneed #theneedtoread

rather_be_reading your mug is so cool!! 5y
BooksMcD @rather_be_reading Thanks! Have you ever been to Voodoo doughnuts? They are sooooo good! 🍩 5y
7 likes2 comments
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Read66
Pickpick

Combining Michael Chabon's wonderful writing skill with his "Sherlock Holmes as a retiree" story totally had me in a happy place. Highly recommend this novella.

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Moray_Reads
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And in total contrast some of the #thin books in my collection #30daysofreadathon

vivastory That book art is fantastic! 6y
Moray_Reads @vivastory it was a present from my friend last year. She tried to explain how to do it the times and I still don't understand! 6y
SilversReviews Wow. Awesome. 6y
49 likes3 comments
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Itchyfeetreader
Mehso-so

A tough one to rate. Michael Chabon is clearly a master of the written word – his vocabulary is exceptional and the overall prose is wonderful. That said I am not quite sure it works particularly well for creating a sense of pace or urgency in a detective / mystery story. In fact, for such a very short book there was a distinct lack of much being uncovered at all. Ultimately a little disengaging to me – and I really did not care for the title.

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LubicaP
Pickpick

A short take on the aging Sherlock Holmes trope. Chabon's trademark mix of humour and melancholy make this an enjoyable read. Including the parrot's perspective was a nice touch :-)

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bpsalinas
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"The conquest of his mind by age was not a mere blunting or slowing down but an erasure, as of a desert capital by a drifting millennium of sand. Time had bleached away the ornate pattern of his intellect, leaving a blank white scrap."

1 stack add
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britt_brooke
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Used book store score! I snagged all of these for $8. Best of all I had credits, so I'm calling them FREE.

For those interested, I'm drinking Prairie Artisan Ales Phantasmagoria Double IPA. It's good. 👌🏻👌🏻 #cheers #booksandbrews

GeekGrl82 Art of Fielding is wonderful! 7y
britt_brooke @GeekGrl82 That was my best score! Its fairly worn, but it was clearanced out at 99 cents. 👍🏻 7y
LauraBeth Double IPA - nice 🙌 7y
See All 16 Comments
britt_brooke @LauraBeth 🙌🏻🍻 7y
badnorthern Interpreter of Maladies is one of my favorite short story collections 7y
britt_brooke @badnorthern I'm excited to read it! 7y
Faibka Cheers! 🍻 7y
Alfoster Loved The Art of Fielding too!! 7y
britt_brooke @Faibka Cheers!! 🍻 7y
britt_brooke @Alfoster I've heard wonderful things about it! #blameitonlitsy 7y
rachellayown Nice stack! 7y
LeahBergen I store up my used bookstore credits and get so much money in there that my husband calls it my other bank account. 😂 7y
britt_brooke @LeahBergen 😂👍🏻 7y
GuiltyFeat The Chabon is actually the least of these and the least of his. Jhumpa Lahiri has never written anything remotely bad. I think she's the most undervalued genius writing today. 7y
britt_brooke @GuiltyFeat Ha! I was drawn to the Chabon because of it's short length. Kavalier and Clay is on my bookshelf yet unread. I'm so intimidated by big books sometimes. 7y
113 likes1 stack add16 comments
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OliverDepp
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Pickpick

A personal favorite in the Holmes canon. A gently powerful tale with grave consequence, redemption, and the turning point of modern war all handled deftly in this 131 page novel.

19 likes5 stack adds
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The_Literary_Jedi
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#peachcovers for #day15 of #augustphotochallenge - some of these may be a stretch in the color department but HEY! I tried 🍑🍑🍑 #augustofpages

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Brooke_H
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Pickpick

I enjoyed this pastiche, though I do feel I would have enjoyed it more if it had been longer. There was a lot of potential here. But I liked the boy and the parrot. Pretty decent. Not amazing. Illustrations are great.

1 stack add
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Brooke_H
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Morning reading