A/N: prompt 18 from Domina Temporis: A discussion of books
Books
The doctor sighed, and glared at Holmes,
And closed his dog-eared, tattered book.
"So tell me why my reading choice
Deserves that arch, indignant look."
Holmes shook his head, "I cannot see
It's worth your while to read romance;
Contrived coincidence, my friend,
Is not how decent plots advance.
And time machines! Ridiculous!
The folly of that draper, Wells.
And treasure! It's absurd a yarn
Of pirates, gold and shipwrecks, sells.
The secret to eternal youth?
That's one of Haggard's wilder tales.
And dinosaurs! Pure fantasy;
It's clear the author's reason fails.
I could go on. I know Lestrade
Is fond of jungles, penned just so,
With bears and wolves. Pure poppycock!
Just fairytales from head to toe!"
~0~
The doctor smiled, and looked at Holmes,
One eyebrow raised, began to speak.
"I must protest, since meeting you,
I see such marvels every week.
I've witnessed more preposterous scenes
Than authors you despise have found;
I doubt Professor Challenger
Encountered any giant hound.
No desert island treasure hunt
Can match events at Musgrave's Hall.
Eternal youth? A quest which caused
Professor Presbury's sad downfall.
The steamship Friesland's shocking end
Can match the Hispaniola's fate;
And Quatermain encountering
That foul red leech would hesitate.
I doubt that Kipling's jungle holds
More peril than a fogbound moor.
And as for fate and happenstance
Five words, dear Holmes; The Sign of the Four.
With jewels in geese, and dancing men,
James Phillimore, his final trip,
A lion's mane, the devil's foot,
And deaths foretold by orange pip.
Add Moriarty's evil schemes;
Admit it Holmes, you must concede,
Comparisons of both suggest
Real life is stranger; word and deed."
~0~
Holmes blinked at Watson thoughtfully;
At last began to understand.
Perhaps he'd find the time to read
A certain author in "The Strand".
~0~
a/n2: references to various Victorian authors and their works. Holmes' opinion is his own:-p