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Israel Zangwill

Tim Lieder

The Big Bow Mystery Paperback – August 15, 2007

by Israel Zangwill (Author), Justin Weber (Illustrator), Thien Tran (Illustrator)

62 ratings

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On a foggy day in the Big Bow District of London, Mrs. Drabdump becomes fearful for her lodger. She knocks several times at his door but no answer. She runs to Inspector Grodman and together they break down his door to find the pooor man lying in his bed with his throat cut. The door was locked from the inside. Thus begins Israel Zangwill's classic mystery. Written in 1891, Big Bow Mystery still retains its power to amuse and entertain, both as a clever mystery and a satire of Victorian London.

Print length

196 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Dybbuk Press, LLC
Publication date

August 15, 2007
Dimensions

6 x 0.42 x 9 inches
ISBN-10

0976654636
ISBN-13

978-0976654636
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Whodunit fans who prefer their murders mysteriously committed behind locked doors will appreciate this reissue of the first impossible crime novel, penned by the unlikely Zangwill (1864-1926)-better known during his lifetime as an ardent British Zionist-in the late 1890s. Widowed landlady Mrs. Drabdump and retired Scotland Yarder Grodman batter down a secured and bolted bedroom door to find Arthur Constant, a hero of the working classes, dead from a cut throat. After suicide is quickly ruled out, the puzzle captures the city's imagination, with theory after theory (some poking fun at Poe's solution to "The Murders in the Rue Morgue") floated in the press, until Grodman himself returns to the lists to try to clear the man condemned to death for the crime. The plot device has been used many times since, but Zangwill deserves credit for inventing it and enlisting it in an entertaining and timeless plot. With a sardonic style and vivid, Dickensian characterizations of Victoria-era London, Zangwill still appeals to contemporary readers.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Product information

Technical Details

Publisher

‎Dybbuk Press, LLC; Reprint edition (August 15, 2007)

Language

‎English

Paperback

‎196 pages

ISBN-10

‎0976654636

ISBN-13

‎978-0976654636

Item Weight

‎9.5 ounces

Dimensions

‎6 x 0.42 x 9 inches

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Customer reviews

5 star		33%
4 star		30%
3 star		24%
2 star		7%
1 star		6%

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Top reviews from the United States

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Arch Stanton

Classic "locked room" mystery with a surprising ending

Reviewed in the United States on January 26, 2018

Verified Purchase

A "locked room" murder mystery from 1895. Often rated as one of the five or ten best of the genre, written by an author who is all but forgotten today. Basically a novella, as a bit long for a short story, yet too short for a novel. The author develops each character a bit more than is really necessary by modern standards, but the overall story is well plotted, believable, and the "why" as well as the "who" and "how" should surprise most readers. I received this free from Amazon for my kindle, but the story is well enough constructed that it would have been worth paying for.

8 people found this helpful

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UtahVicki

Well written and held my interest

Reviewed in the United States on October 23, 2018

Verified Purchase

Recommended for mystery readers who are not discouraged by old out of date words. I used my kindle many times for definitions. A satisfying surprise ending.

8 people found this helpful

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Kindle Customer

Humorous locked room mystery

Reviewed in the United States on February 5, 2015

Verified Purchase

I raise an eyebrow at the ending, but the author's preface explains why he went with it.
A young man is murdered in a locked room seemingly without motive. A noted detective, now retired, attempts to solve it as a "last hurrah" before his Scotland Yard rival can convict an innocent man in Victorian England.
While the subject is confounding and tragic, the actual writing is humorous and entertaining, as well as some of the situations the characters encounter. Some courtroom drama stating the opposing cases was a little long but summarized the clues for those willing to try to solve the puzzle. I would read more by this author.

11 people found this helpful

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Customer Cathy

Old Time Mystery

Reviewed in the United States on June 25, 2018

Verified Purchase

A murder of “the man of the people” in a rooming house in a locked room leads the owner to get an ex police officer to break down the door. Ideas flood in from all over about how it was done. A man is caught and convicted, but it has a twist. This is an old time mystery solved in an old way. 4 stars

3 people found this helpful

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azlee

Oh so slow

Reviewed in the United States on June 14, 2018

Verified Purchase

I was hoping for a tantalizing tale of murder and mystery but while reading, up until the end, was having a hard time remaining interested. I will grant that the ending was unexpected but it was not enough to change my opinion on the story.

2 people found this helpful

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Gorilichis

Dumb!

Reviewed in the United States on September 9, 2019

Verified Purchase

I guess I should give this first full-length locked room murder mystery the benefit of the doubt being that it was the very first but it was just dumb. The characters are unlikable and, yes, I didn't see it coming but just because the solution made no sense at all.

Reviewed in the United States on December 10, 2017

Verified Purchase

I saw the film The Verdict and wanted to read the book on which it is based. There are some major character differences and the reason for the crime is vastly different. It was an engaging read and I enjoyed finding the elements portrayed in the film.

4 people found this helpful

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Amazon Customer

A very different flavor from modern mysteries- but enjoyable

Reviewed in the United States on December 30, 2019

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Sharp, clear portraits of all the characters, a baffling mystery, and a lot of snark. Felt immersed in a former London. Class really was everything in human relations, wow.

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Top reviews from other countries

Globetrotter

Classic closed room mystery

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on December 14, 2018

Verified Purchase

If you like sealed room mysteries this is for you. Supposedly the first of the genre, it was certainly written a long while ago. I didn't guess the solution but should have done since many other authors (Agatha Christie for example) have used the same principle in their, much more recent, books which shows how essentially sound it is.

Primo

Four Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 25, 2017

Verified Purchase

I enjoyed this book. It is a classic piece of pre-ww2 detective fiction.

Book Reader

Four Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 3, 2018

Verified Purchase

A classic locked room mystery.

Howard K

The big bow mystery

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 20, 2013

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The book was very well written and although over a hundred years ago you could feel the area and the atmosphere and enjoyed it a lot.

Susan Bailey

worth reading

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 16, 2015

Verified Purchase

good book

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