Arthur & George by Julian Barnes -- Book Review

Arthur & George is the story of two men and how their lives intersected. Arthur is Arthur Conan Doyle, author of the Sherlock Holmes stories. George is George Edalji, a half-Indian, half-Scottish solicitor. The story is told in chapters that alternate between the two protagonists (each chapter has a heading Arthur or George) until their lives intersect (at which point the chapter headings change to Arthur & George.)

Arthur leads a life of genteel poverty as a child, due to his father's weakness and alcoholism. Still, his extended family has enough money and connections that he is very well educated. He is also the beneficiary of his mother's strength of will and character, along with her storytelling ability.

George is raised in a village vicarage by loving and highly moral parents. His mother is Scottish; his father a Parsee who converted to the Church of England and became a clergyman. While George has two parents of strong character and convictions, he is hindered by the racial prejudice of the village population. Nevertheless, his intelligence and ability allow him to become a solicitor, and he is on his way to achieving the stability and good fortune he seeks when calamity in the form of grave injustice overcomes him.

It is this grave injustice that brings Arthur and George together. The narrative is so skillfully woven, that as a reader I could see exactly why each of the characters could have behaved in no way other than they did. While the central story is drawn from a set of historical incidents, Barnes has truly brought the story to life in this book.

Julian Barnes has written numerous books and essays, and you can read more about him here:
http://www.julianbarnes.com/