I read this book for the Mount TBR Reading Challenge hosted over
at My
Reader’s Block from January 1 – December 31, 2016. The challenge is to read
books that you already own.
The Case of the
Silent Partner – Erle Stanley Gardner
The 17th Perry Mason mystery, published in 1940, is a
must-read for all Mason fans. The reason is that Lt. Tragg makes his debut as
Mason’s astute adversary. Gardner
explicitly puts Tragg at the same age as Mason, something that may disconcert
fans who have always pictured Tragg as Ray Collins who was almost 30 years
older than Raymond Burr.
Another curious point is that Tragg interviews a person
of interest without Mason in the scene even after Mason has been introduced
into the story. Usually Gardner places Mason in every act, every scene. Gardner
has Tragg get the person of interest to reveal unwittingly what is on her mind
while ostensibly giving her a word association test. Gardner does not want even
the dullest reader to miss that the wily Tragg knows psychology whereas his
hard-charging predecessor Sgt. Holcomb spells “psychology” starting with an
“s.”
Our expectation that a Mason novel always climaxes with a
rousing preliminary hearing leads to the third uncommon point. The climax
is instead a civil trial. Mason does make the opposing lawyer look silly,
however.
Because Tragg gets a lot of space, there is less Paul
Drake. He is not introduced until about half-way through the story. His role is
small. Fans of Della Street will be happy to know that she plays a very active
role in the story. This, by the way, is why the novels are much better than the
TV series. In the TV shows Della rarely does little beyond answering the phone
and taking notes.
As usual, too, Gardner expresses his support for
womankind, being as much a feminist as we can expect of a man of his
generation. He sympathizes with the female owner of a small chain of flower
shops, emphasizes that she has to be as tough and canny as men in business
but still be available to be caregivers to invalid relatives. I’m not quite so
cynical to think that Gardner’s sympathy and respect for women was just a ploy
to attract female readership.
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