LORD PETER VIEWS THE BODY

One wonders whether Dorothy Sayers considered naming her famous detective Lord Peter WHIMSY, for, clearly, whimsy is very much a part of her loving attitude toward Wimsey. She is wry, he is wry; she clever, he clever; she likable, he likable. In these nine delightful stories Wimsey's many qualities come to the fore, including his skill at lying, housebreaking, exceeding the speed limit, impersonation, cheating at poker, all in the name of solving crimes. Though he may at times be a bit slick and leap too adroitly to the solution, he is always engaging and made more so by the splendid narration of Ian Carmichael (who has portrayed Wimsey on television). Carmichael reads the many different characters well but is especially fine on Lord Peter himself, fully capturing his British upper-class confidence and his noblesse oblige toward those whose problems he encounters. One can imagine Sayers, Wimsey, and Carmichael being fond of each other's company, and listeners will enjoy that trio's companionship also. T. H. © AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine [Published: OCT/ NOV 01]