The Final Solution Satisfies a Holmes Craving

"Here was a puzzle to kindle old appetites and energies."

To those Sherlock Holmes fans out there, longing for more of his mysteries to read in the all-too-finite collection of Doyle's mysteries: you are in luck.

Today I finished reading Michael Chabon's The Final Solution, a stunning mystery novella featuring none other than the star British detective himself. While the detective is not mentioned by name, but rather referred to as the "old man," it is clearly Holmes, in all of his deductive splendor.

The novella takes place in Britain in 1944, in the middle of World War II. The title alludes not only to the Nazi plan of Jewish extermination, but also to the Holmes story, "The Final Problem." In the novella, Holmes tries to find a parrot at the heart of a murder mystery. Where the parrot is, Holmes knows, the murderer is also. To make things more exciting, the parrot is suspected of knowing a secret German code that might prove useful to the Brits, and so the Germans may want this parrot silenced.

The novella gives a perspective of Holmes that Conan Doyle never did. Holmes at this point has lived a long time since his detective days, having given up the profession some thirty years earlier ("As you must know, I am retired. As indeed I have been since the tenth of August, 1914," he explains in the novella). His life, instead, is dedicated to other pleasures, the foremost of which is his keeping of bees. He recognizes these bees as an "animal pleasure," and admits that "such things had once meant very little to him."

At the old age of 89, Holmes struggles with his deteriorating body. He is physically weak, wages a "daily battle in the lavatory," and struggles with "arthritis crippling his fingers." And Holmes thinks of his impending death, not as a result of some detective adventure, but rather as an inevitable event in the course of his now-mundane life. "In particular he feared dying in some undignified way, on the jakes or with his face in the porridge."

Holmes also worries that his mental activities are not as exceptional as they once were, and that they may not be up to the task of solving the mystery at hand.

"He felt - with all his body, as one felt the force of gravity or inertia - the inevitability of his failure. 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 driving millennium of sand. Time had bleached away the ornate pattern of his intellect, leaving a blank white scrap."

But Holmes has missed his work as a detective. As Chabon writes,

"A delicate, inexorable lattice of inferences began to assemble themselves, like a crystal, in the old man's mind, shivering, catching the light in glints and surmises. It was the deepest pleasure life could afford, this deductive crystallization, this paroxysm of guesswork, and one that he had lived without for a terribly long time."

It's a thrilling mystery, indeed, and Chabon has yet again proven his masterful storytelling abilities. By setting the story thirty years after Holmes retired, the detective is faced with new challenges and barriers that he never faced in his prime. These new hurdles put a new spin on the Conan Doyle mysteries so many love, and this novella should be a most-welcomed work to Holmes fans everywhere.

Best Works of American Fiction of the Past 25 Years

I love to read. A provocative novel or short story can provide a lasting kind of satisfaction that, at least for me, other forms of art cannot. As a writer, I use others' work to inspire and draw upon. I learn from them, from their styles and approaches. As Picasso said, "Good artists copy, great artists steal."

I also love "best of" lists. While they are almost always arbitrary and meaningless, they are fun nonetheless, and can help to organize, at least crudely, large bodies of disparate things. Perhaps most important, lists often serve as recommendations. If other people enjoy something, I might also.

So when I saw that The New York Times Book Review surveyed 125 writers and book critics to find the "best work of American fiction of the last 25 years," I got excited. More books for me to read!

My excitement was founded. The list is full of authors which I have seen in passing, but have never read. They're being added to my to-read list, posthaste.

On the top of The Times's list is Toni Morrison's Beloved. The four top runners-up are Don DeLillo's Underworld, Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian, John Updike's Rabbit Angstrom (which is actually four novels: Rabbit at Rest, Rabbit is Rich, Rabbit Redux, and Rabbit Run), and Philip Roth's American Pastoral.

Philip Roth's and Don DeLillo's novels show up over and over again in the list of other works that received multiple votes. While I am very aware of Philip Roth, Don DeLillo is an author with whom I am wholly unfamiliar. I will seek him out.

I am always looking to expand my author readership. I love reading a novel and then, if I like the author, looking for more of his of her novels, taking in everything by the author that I can find.

And so, onto my to-read list, Philip Roth and Don DeLillo are added.

More specifically, I'm adding the list's top-five books, which I will read in the near future. I hope to use them as a springboard to more books. To review, the list of books, in the order I plan on reading them:

• American Pastoral, by Philip Roth
  
• Underworld, by Don DeLillo
  
• Beloved, by Toni Morrison
  
• Blood Meridian, by Cormac McCarthy
  
• Rabbit Angstrom, by John Updike
  

A. O. Scott, the New York Times film critic, wrote an essay about the list and offered an explanation for the top-rated works.

"The best works of fiction, according to our tally," A.O. Scott writes, "appear to be those that successfully assume a burden of cultural importance. They attempt not just the exploration of particular imaginary people and places, but also the illumination of epochs, communities, of the nation itself. America is not only their setting, but also their subject."

The List of Results
A.O. Scott's NYTimes Essay on the List
The List of Judges

Scott's essay, and the list, will appear in the print edition of The New York Times Book Review on May 21.

Movies: Summer 2006

While film season isn't really until late November, the summer blockbuster season usually provides some movies to make me excited. This year is no different. Here are the movies due to come out over the next few months which I am most anticipating. They are listed chronologically by release date.

• Mission: Impossible III - This movie came out last week, and I can't wait to see it. Tom Cruise may be a nutcase, but he's still good for a decent action movie in my book. The real draw of this film, though, is its villain, played by the magnificent, and Oscar-winning, Philip Seymour Hoffman. Any movie with Hoffman in it gets my nine bucks without a second thought.
  
  
• The Da Vinci Code - With all of the hype surrounding this film, I'm very curious to see what Ron Howard has done with Dan Brown's riveting and entertaining book. Plus, I love Audrey Tautou. But what's up with Tom Hanks's' hair? Opens May 19.
  
  
• Wordplay - A much anticipated movie about crossword puzzles and, specifically, New York Times crossword editor (and legend) Will Shortz. The film is complete with cameo testimonials from Bill Clinton, Bob Dole, and Jon Stewart. Opens June 16.
  
  
• Superman Returns - The first Superman movie in about 20 years, I'm interested to see how the mostly unknown Brandon Routh handles his role as the man of steel. The film also stars Kevin Spacey as Lex Luther and Kate Bosworth as Lois Lane. Opens June 30.
  
  
• Little Miss Sunshine -This film is an indie comedy picked up by Fox Searchlight. It stars Greg Kinnear, Toni Collette, and Steve Carell in a story about a girl's family taking a cross-country trip to get her to a beauty pageant. Opens July 28.
  
  
• Miami Vice - Every summer needs a good action flick, complete with violence and underdressed women. This film has the benefit of being directed by the great Michael Mann. It stars Colin Farrell and Jamie Foxx, which may or may not be a good thing. Either way, this film will probably be one of my 'guilty pleasures' of the summer. Opens July 28.
  
  
• World Trade Center - Oliver Stone always seems to be surrounded by controversy, and the subject matter of this film all but ensures some more. Still, the talented filmmaker is capable of doing great things with the medium, and his ability to handle grand scales in his films should result in an interesting, provocative, and memorable movie-going experience. Opens August 11.
  
  
• Snakes on a Plane - Enough said. Opens August 18.
  
  
• Factotum - This movie from Norwegian director Bent Hamer is about a man, played by Matt Dillon, who pursues his writing while taking up distractions of alcohol, women, and gambling. Co-starring Lili Taylor and Marisa Tomei. Opens August 18.
  
  

Teachers Have It Easy

While spending a few days in Maine with Helen, I had the opportunity to finish reading Teachers Have it Easy: The Big Sacrifices and Small Salaries of America's Teachers, by Daniel Moulthrop, Ninive Clements Calegari, and, most notably, Dave Eggers.

The book is a treatise on the state of teachers' salaries in America, and the effect these salaries have on the education system. The authors argue that poor teacher pay discourages talented college graduates from entering the profession, and forces quality teachers to give up teaching for professions that allow them to live a comfortable life.

The book gives accounts from teachers across the country of their experiences struggling on their salaries, and how they are treated by society as a result of these salaries.

On their salaries, teachers are often unable to buy a house or even raise a family. Those that teach in wealthy districts cannot afford to live in the neighborhoods of the children they are teaching. The authors argue that because of their salaries, teachers are treated as second-class citizens, not afforded the respect they deserve considering the jobs they do.

The pay inequities of teachers relative to other professionals are even more stark when you consider the daily schedules of teachers. People often think of teachers as having easy schedules, with summers off and multiple week-long vacations throughout the year. But when school is in session, teachers have to be on top of their game nonstop. They cannot take breaks, have an "off-moment," or space out for a few minutes. They cannot even use the bathroom at their leisure.

Teachers are responsible - legally liable - for the students in their classroom, and are charged with keeping them occupied, interested, and safe all day long, while teaching these students a certain curriculum, and preparing them to pass standardized tests.

The traditional salary scale, which is more or less followed across the country, consists of a starting salary which increases as teachers remain in the district, and as they earn continuing education credits. Despite low pay to begin with, this system usually flattens out after 15 years, giving little incentive for teachers to remain. Furthermore, teachers are often given raises for irrelevent graduate coursework.

The solution, the authors argue, is increased pay for teachers, which will allow teachers to remain in the profession, and attract more and better qualified college graduates into the profession.

The book gives some success stories - instances in which school districts overhaul the traditional salary scale in favor of a series of incentives for teacher improvement. In these new systems, teachers often have lower starting salaries than traditional systems but are able to earn bonuses based on performance and relevant continuing education credits.

These new pay systems have caused an increase in applications for open positions in the school districts, allowing the districts to pick from a more qualified pool of applicants. This has meant better teachers in the school system.

There is not a federal mandate that could fix the system. Districts have different needs, and should employ salary scales that fit these needs, with nuances that are appropriate for their faculty and structure. Still, increased federal and state funding could go a long way to reforming the system.

But there have been successes short of an increase in taxes. Creative and innovative solutions have seen positive results.

Teachers unions, school administrators, and legislators need to get serious about their goals for the education system, and they need to acknowledge that the success of the system depends on increased teacher salaries.

As I enter the teaching profession, I hope to be respected not for my willingness to sacrifice a certain lifestyle, but rather for my dedication to help shape a better society. As a society, we shouldn't be proud of teachers because they give up the opportunity to make more money. Instead, we should recognize them as a vital part of our nation's future, and we should compensate them accordingly.

New England Real Ale Exhibition

Last night I attended the New England Real Ale Exhibition in Somerville, Mass. It was the tenth annual festival and featured 'real ales' from both the U.K. and New England.

Real ale refers to a brewing method in the British tradition that differs from beers more widely available in the United States. It undergoes two stages of fermentation: one in the brewery, and then a second in the vessel in from which it is transported and served. This vessel can be either a bottle or a brewer's cask.

Real ale is not pasteurized or filtered, and it is tapped from the cask using a hand pump or simple gravity tap. Traditional real ale has lower carbonation and a wider array or flavors and aromas than its more 'popular' counterparts.

The alternatives to cask ales are the 'popular' beers that are served from kegs. These kegs are kept colder; they can be stored longer after they are tapped, do not require elaborate cellaring, and are easier to pour. These benefits have led to the prominence of keg beers, and the near-extinction of cask-conditioned ales.

During the year I lived in London, I drank cask ales constantly. There was a pub on every corner, and each of these pubs had about four cask ales on tap at any given time. I learned to love these ales; the low carbonation and slightly warmer serving temperature allowed me to notice qualities and complexities of beer tastes that I had not noticed before. They are smooth, flavorful, and delicious.

The Real Ale Exhibition allowed me to return to some of these London tastes. The first beer I sampled was Fuller's London Pride - my favorite beer to drink in London (and my favorite beer, full stop). The next ale I sampled was Brains Dark, a beer brewed in Cardiff, Wales (which I drank and enjoyed during my two day visit to that city in March 2005).

My third ale was from an American brewer - Midnight Madness Smoked Porter from Rock Art Brewery in Morrisville, Vt. This ale tasted surprisingly like the Brains dark, with roast and caramel flavors and a delicious, lasting finish of malt and roast that stays in your nose.

The final ale I sampled was another Welsh beer - Breconshire's Golden Valley. This ale was unlike any of the other ales I sampled. It was crisper, fruitier, and a bit more complex. I enjoyed it, but liked it less than the first three beers. Golden Valley was perhaps a bit too complex for its own good, not quite balancing its fruity flavor with enough hops. It was not quite bitter enough.

The festival was crowded and hot. There was a line to get in, on which we waited for about 30 minutes. Once in the room, it was cramped and hard to get around. The number of people at the event testifies to its popularity and success, and indicates some hope for the real ale movement in the United States. But it also means that it is time for the annual festival to change venues to a place that is quieter and more spacious, providing a pleasant and relaxing ale-drinking environment.

Despite the crowds, I enjoyed the Real Ale Exhibition, and look forward to returning again in years to come.