Book Review: The Stonehenge Letters

Book: The Stonehenge Letters by Harry Karlinsky

Source: Borrowed from Publisher/NetGalley for an honest review

Publication: Available now

Description:

While digging through the Nobel Archives in Stockholm, trying to figure out why his hero, Sigmund Freud, never received a Nobel Prize, a psychiatrist makes an unusual discovery.

Among the unsolicited self-nominations in the museum’s ‘Crackpot’ file there are six letters addressed to Mr Ragnar Sohlman, executor of Alfred Nobel’s will. Remarkably, all but one has been written by a Nobel laureate – including Rudyard Kipling, Ivan Pavlov, Teddy Roosevelt and Marie Curie. Each letter attempts to explain why and how Stonehenge was constructed. Diligent research eventually uncovers that Alfred Nobel, intrigued by a young woman's obsession with the mysterious landmark, added a secret codicil to his will:

A prize – reserved exclusively for Nobel laureates – was to be awarded to the person who can solve the mystery of Stonehenge.

Weaving together a wealth of primary documents – photos, letters, wills – The Stonehenge Letters is a wryly documented archive of a fascinating covert competition, complete with strange but illuminating submissions and a contentious prize-awarding process.

But is this fact or is this fiction?



Rating: 2 stars (Did Not Finish)

Review:

The Stonehenge Letters read more as nonfiction than fiction. This wasn't exactly the most interesting story.

One thing that I will say in defense of this story is it's very well researched and it's written in a way that leave the reader wondering what's true and what's false.

I thought this started off strong with the narrator of the story wondering why Sigmund Freud never received a Nobel Prize. The narrator goes over the research that they delved into as they tried to find the reason for the snub.

Unfortunately, this was just really boring. Although I did not finish reading this, I did like all of the pictures that were included to enhance the story.