Reading the Detectives discussion

Welcome to our May/June buddy read of The Moving Toyshop The Moving Toyshop the third mystery to feature Oxford don Gervase Fen and published in 1946.

Richard Cadogan, poet and would-be bon vivant, arrives for what he thinks will be a relaxing holiday in the city of dreaming spires. Late one night, however, he discovers the dead body of an elderly woman lying in a toyshop and is coshed on the head. When he comes to, he finds that the toyshop has disappeared and been replaced with a grocery store. The police are understandably skeptical of this tale but Richard's former schoolmate, Gervase Fen (Oxford professor and amateur detective), knows that truth is stranger than fiction (in fiction, at least). Soon the intrepid duo are careening around town in hot pursuit of clues but just when they think they understand what has happened, the disappearing-toyshop mystery takes a sharp turn…

Please feel free to post spoilers in this thread.

Just 2 stars again from me. One of the reviews said this was like a Benny Hill sketch, and I couldn't agree more. It is a complete farce. I did think the overall plot of this was well thought out, but the racing about in 8 wheeled trucks was pathetic, along with the hoards of students. At least Fen was more was not so ill-mannered in this as he has been. If this was supposed to be Crispin's best, it doesn't bode well for the rest as far as I can see.

I remember rereading this a couple of years ago, having not been greatly impressed by it first time, and came away with a very similar reaction, Jill. I'm not a fan of farce.

For anyone who has recently finished this one, I've found a couple of links you might like to look at.

This is a blog review - I didn't notice any spoilers but put it in this thread just in case:
https://www.stuckinabook.com/the-movi...

And this is a discussion between two readers at another blog, which does have a lot of spoilers - it starts off by discussing a Swedish translation of the novel, but then gets on to a more general discussion of the book, including its multitude of coincidences!
https://theinvisibleevent.com/2019/07...

Jill wrote: "Just 2 stars again from me. One of the reviews said this was like a Benny Hill sketch, and I couldn't agree more. It is a complete farce. I did think the overall plot of this was well thought out,..."

I wasn't part of the buddy-read because I had already read it early last year. But I also wasn't a fan and I agree with your assessment. This is my review:

With its enticing title, and ranking on both the Crime Writers' Association and the Mystery Writers of America 100 best books of all time lists, I had been wanting to read this book for years.

Unfortunately, I hadn't read up enough about it, for example, this well-doe review.

The problem is "vintage British silliness" that lovers of Gilbert and Sullivan's comic operas would enjoy is not my cup of tea. Your mileage may vary.

I enjoyed this. Yes, it was improbable and silly at times, but it seemed fun to me.. I have to admit I had to use the dictionary on my kindle several times. I mean, "rodomontade" and "prognathous" aren't in my vocabulary.

ChrisGA wrote: "I enjoyed this. Yes, it was improbable and silly at times, but it seemed fun to me.. I have to admit I had to use the dictionary on my kindle several times. I mean, "rodomontade" and "prognathous" aren't in my vocabulary...."

Good to hear you enjoyed it, Chris. I am enjoying it too - I've just come across another unusual word, "atrabilious", which my dictionary informs me means "melancholy or irritable".

I can't see myself using it somehow!

That’s the fun of Edmund Crispin, Chris and Judy—new words! If you really want to be baffled you should try his serious novels written under his real name, J. I. M. Stewart.

Abigail wrote: "That’s the fun of Edmund Crispin, Chris and Judy—new words! If you really want to be baffled you should try his serious novels written under his real name, J. I. M. Stewart."

J I M Stewart is the real name of Michael Innes, not Edmund Crispin, which was a nom de plume for Robert Bruce Montgomery.

Thank you Abigail and Rosina. My mum is a big fan of Michael Innes' novels published under his real name, J I M Stewart, but I haven't tried them yet.

Sorry, spaced out for a moment there! In my defense, I was engaged in compiling a list of Michael Innes novels at the time and they both have imposing vocabularies!

My review:
"I added a star on my re-read as this time I was not expecting a sensible story and could relax and enjoy the fantastical farce."

I also quite enjoyed this, once I'd figured out I had to let go of expecting a sensible and well-thought out mystery, and just settled back to enjoy the ride. I do enjoy the dialogue and even the new words, and having recently spent a bit of time in Oxford it was fun to be able to track some of the racing about in my head (and when I got lost, my lovely edition had a map inside the front cover). I did enjoy the gentle mockery of University/Oxford life, and even the preposterous will and overall plot was amusing. I did enjoy the small discussion on being a poet, and was sorry not to see more of the Chief Inspector, who featured more prominently in the earlier books we read. I hope he will return.