Selection of Sherlock Holmes stories - Arthur Conan Doyle
I don't remember exactly which collection this was, but it included some of his more famous ones. i was hesitant for a long time to read these, thinking they'd be dry, Dickensian, but i was very, very wrong. they are brisk, smart, and the characters are surprisingly compelling. i guess it makes a lot more sense how deeply entrenched Holmes and Watson are in British culture after reading these, they were pretty good. criticism: formulaic, repetitive, archaic British culture. can't really complain about any of these though.