The Parallel Case of St. Louis met on November 12 to discuss "The Man with the Twisted Lip." We had a good turnout and a great discussion on the case!
The meeting started with general discussion, including our updated website, Facebook page and Twitter account. We also discussed the possibility of bringing back movie nights in 2017. A copy of the newly published collection of essays, About Sixty: Why Every Sherlock Holmes Story is the Best edited by Christopher Redmond, was passed around and got good reviews from those of us who have read it so far.
Another topic discussed was Sherlockian collection currently being stored at the McKendree University library. For those of you that remember, Mary Schroeder had a nice collection of Baker Street Journals and other Sherlockian writings that were stored at McKendree. Mary has since left McKendree but the collection has remained there. We are in the process of finding a new home for the collection, preferably one that is more accessible to Sherlockians in the St. Louis area. If you know of a possible home for the collection, please email us at parallelcasestl@gmail.com.
The group also took time to talk about the passing of Gordon Speck, BSI. Gordon was well liked by everyone that met him, and many members were able to connect with old friends at his service. Gordon was a prolific member of the Occupants of the Empty House scion in southern Illinois. Joe shared information that the 2016 Occupants' booklet would be a collection of 37 articles all written by Gordon and reminiscences from those whose lives he touched. The 75 page book is available for order by sending a check for $21 to Bill Cochran. Proceeds from the book will go to the University of Minnesota Sherlock Holmes collection and Coats for Kids in southern Illinois.
Our story this month was "The Man with the Twisted Lip." The conversation kicked off with the general feeling that all three wives in the story were really mistreated by their respective husbands. We also covered the John/James controversy, just why Holmes was staying at Mrs. St. Clair's house, and if Holmes had one or three dressing gowns throughout the canon. The geography in the story was another popular topic, and Michael Harrison's In the Footsteps of Sherlock Holmes was mentioned as a great resource for anyone interested in Victorian London geography.
We also got to see what exactly a wax vesta is, and discussed other books by Doyle. The meeting wrapped up at 3:00, and we all plan to meet again after the holidays on January 14th to discuss the classic winter tale "The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle." Hope to see you there!
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