Résumé
Résumé de The Hound of the Baskervilles
Go deeper: the whole of The Hound of the Baskervilles
About 3 h 50 min to read.À qui s’adresse-t-il ?
Readers who enjoy clue-driven mysteries, foggy moors, old family legends and the friendship of Holmes and Watson will feel at home here, as will anyone who likes to see reason face a frightening rumor.
De quoi parle ce livre ?
A stick left behind in Baker Street gives Sherlock Holmes clues to a stranger's life. Then the stranger arrives with a tale of a cursed Devon family, a monstrous hound and a baronet dead in a yew alley. Arthur Conan Doyle's novel of 1902 is told by Dr. Watson, and it sends him onto a moor of bogs, stone huts and a cry in the dark. Holmes insists on testing natural explanations before accepting a supernatural one. The solution stays yours to find.
Dans ce résumé
- 1Holmes reads a stranger from his stickFree
- 2An old curse and a strange death
- 3Holmes weighs a devil against the facts
- 4Three threads snap in London
- 5A gloomy house and a sound in the night
- 6The neighbors on the moor
- 7Watson's reports and the candle in the window
- 8A letter, a lady and a hut
- 9Reason against rumor, told through Watson's eyes
Point clé 1 sur 9
Holmes reads a stranger from his stick
The story opens at breakfast in Baker Street. Dr. Watson picks up a walking stick left behind by a visitor the night before. It carries the name James Mortimer and the year 1884, and Holmes, sitting with his back turned, asks what Watson makes of it.
Watson guesses a respected, elderly country doctor. Holmes takes the guess apart piece by piece. The silver band suggests a hospital gift, so the owner is a friendly, absent-minded man under thirty.
Dr. Mortimer comes in and explains that the stick was a gift on his marriage. He says he has come about a serious and extraordinary problem. Holmes works from small physical facts, and he reminds Watson that the world is full of obvious things no one notices.
That’s 1 of 9 key points.
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Go deeper: the whole of The Hound of the Baskervilles
About 3 h 50 min to read.Who’s who
- Sherlock Holmes
- The consulting detective works with Watson to investigate the danger threatening Sir Henry and his ancestral household.
- Dr. John Watson
- Holmes’s trusted friend accompanies Sir Henry to Dartmoor and investigates the people surrounding Baskerville Hall.
- Sir Henry Baskerville
- The new heir to Baskerville Hall hopes to settle there despite warnings about danger on the moor.
- Dr. James Mortimer
- The country doctor brings Holmes the troubling circumstances surrounding Sir Charles’s death and concerns about Sir Henry.
- Jack Stapleton
- A naturalist living near Baskerville Hall, Stapleton knows the moor and takes an interest in Sir Henry.
- Beryl Stapleton
- Introduced as Jack Stapleton’s sister, Beryl lives near the estate and gives Watson further cause for concern.
- Mr. Barrymore
- The servant at Baskerville Hall works alongside his wife, and his secretive behavior attracts Watson’s attention.
- Mrs. Barrymore
- Mr. Barrymore’s wife serves at Baskerville Hall and shares private worries that make the household seem uneasy.
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 60,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 4 h
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary; paperback, hardcover and large print at cost
- LanguagesEnglish and 12 other languages
Questions about The Hound of the Baskervilles
What is The Hound of the Baskervilles about?
It follows Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson as they investigate the death of Sir Charles Baskerville on Dartmoor. A family legend says a monstrous hound haunts the Baskervilles, and Holmes must separate rumor from fact before the heir is harmed.
Who are the main characters in The Hound of the Baskervilles?
The main figures are Holmes and Watson, Dr. Mortimer, the young heir Sir Henry Baskerville, the butler Barrymore and his wife, and the neighbors Stapleton and Miss Stapleton. Each one holds a piece of the puzzle.
Is The Hound of the Baskervilles based on a true story?
No, it is a work of fiction, published in 1902. Doyle dedicated it to a friend whose account of a West Country legend gave him the idea, and he set it on the real landscape of Dartmoor.
Is The Hound of the Baskervilles a good place to start with Sherlock Holmes?
Yes, it works well as an introduction. It is a full novel with a single clear case, a vivid setting and short chapters, and Watson explains Holmes's methods as he goes. No earlier stories are needed.
What is the main message of The Hound of the Baskervilles?
The book shows that careful observation and logic can answer fear and rumor. It also explores how deception, inheritance and loyalty shape what people do, and why a plain explanation often lies behind a frightening story.