The House Without a Key
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 This is the cover from the Penzler facsimile edition from 1996. Reproduction of the 1925 reprint by Grosset & Dunlap(1). |
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| Author | Earl Derr Biggers |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | Charlie Chan mysteries |
| Genre(s) | Mystery novel |
| Publisher | Bobbs-Merrill (1st edition, USA); Harrap (1st edition, UK) |
| Released | 1925 (1st edition) |
| Media type | Print (Paperback (1st edition)) |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-553-08446-1 (Paperback edition (1974) by Bantam (USA)) |
| Followed by | The Chinese Parrot |
The House Without a Key is a novel that was written in 1925 by Earl Derr Biggers. It is the first of the Charlie Chan mysteries written by Biggers.
Contents |
[edit] Plot summary
It deals with the murder of a former member of Boston society, whose sister and nephew have come to try to take home. The nephew, John Quincy Winterslip, soon falls under the spell of the islands himself, and decides to stay.
[edit] Literary significance & criticism
The novel is remarkable in two aspects. First of all, although Chan is ostensibly the detective, his role in the book is fairly small. He does figure out the solution to the case, but it is at the same time as Winterslip, and it is the Bostonian who has the honor of collaring the murderer.
Secondly, the novel's portrayal of the Chinese, specifically Charlie Chan, is amazingly forward-looking for its era. The Bostonians find it hard to accept a Chinese detective on the case, but the locals know him by reputation and show him great respect. Some of the descriptions, to be sure, do evince some of the stereotypes of the day. But on the whole, Chan is portrayed sympathetically, as an equal to the whites that surround him.
The novel is perhaps the best-written of the entire series, and is very well-crafted -- some believe it to be among the better novels written in the United States. Its solution is nearly identical with that used in the final Perry Mason novel by Erle Stanley Gardner, The Case of the Postponed Murder (1970).
[edit] Film, TV or theatrical adaptations
It was adapted for film twice, as The House Without a Key in 1926 and as Charlie Chan's Greatest Case in 1933.
[edit] Trivia
Charlie Chan does not speak his first word until page 82 (first paperback edition).(2)
[edit] Review
[edit] External links
[edit] References
(1)Charlie Chan Mystery Series - Hardcover Editions & Printings
(2)Charlie Chan, The Enduring Detective by Marv Lachman
