По следам детективов: увлекательные истории для изучения английского языка

Unfortunately, Conan Doyle endured terrible misfortune: he lost many loved ones, including his father, wife, son, brother, and others. It might have been the reason why he showed an interest in spiritualism[1]. This may come as a surprise, but he also believed in the existence of magical beings. Have you ever heard of the Cottingley Fairies? This is a curious story about two girls named Elsie and Frances, who supposedly managed to take a series of photos of dancing creatures. To be more precise, it is one of the greatest hoaxes of all time. It may seem incredible, but those photos, which showed tiny figures with transparent wings, came to Conan Doyle’s attention. Call it coincidence or providence, but at that time Arthur Conan Doyle was working on the article about fairies for the Strand Magazine. When the experts unofficially verified the authenticity of the photos, the writer was so thrilled that he asked Elsie and Frances to use those images of mythical creatures in his publication. The girls’ family was confused by the attention of the legendary writer but quickly agreed. Public opinion was mixed: some believed that the magical beings were real, while others thought they were fake. Later Arthur Conan Doyle wrote a book on the topic under the title The Coming of the Fairies. Only years later, after the writer’s death, the cousins finally confessed that those photos were a hoax, and the wizard creatures were made from paper cut-outs and hat pins. As it turned out, it was Elsie who drew the images and had the wings added to them. When everything was ready, both girls arranged a theme photo shoot. Later Elsie and Frances admitted that they were too embarrassed to tell the truth after fooling the literary genius.

The creator of Sherlock Holmes was once tasked to solve a real-life crime. He helped the wrongly convicted man go free. Do you remember that Doyle also participated in the search for Agatha Christie? He took one of her gloves to a spirit medium to find her location. The visionary supposedly said that Agatha Christie was still alive but was in the “twilight state,” and that she’d show up “next Wednesday.” Believe it or not, but she was found a week later, safe and alive, claiming memory loss. After that, how can one not believe in miracles?

Apart from detective novels and science fiction, Arthur Conan Doyle also wrote poems, plays, and historical novels. Among his most well-known books are The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, A Study in Scarlet, The Hound of the Baskervilles, The Lost World, and many others.

The genius writer lived a rich life filled with many ups and downs. He died in 1930, surrounded by his family. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle will always be remembered as one of the greatest writers of all time.

Vocabulary

all-rounder [??:l'ra?nd?] – всесторонне одаренный, развитый человек

boundless energy ['ba?ndl?s 'en???] – безграничная, неиссякаемая энергия

contradiction [?k?:ntr?'d?k?n] – противоречие

fairy ['fe?ri] – фея, волшебница

ghost [g??st] – привидение, призрак

the supernatural [?i: ?su:p?'naet?r?l] – сверхъестественное

fictional character ['f?k??nl 'kaer?kt?] – вымышленный персонаж

prosperous family ['pr?:sp?r?s 'faem?l?] – благополучная, состоятельная семья

well-respected [wel r?'spekt?d] – авторитетный, многоуважаемый

have a passion (for) [h?v ? 'pae?n f?:] – обожать, страстно увлекаться чем-то, иметь страсть к чему-то

inherit [?n'her?t] – унаследовать, перенять

health issues [hel? '??u:z] – проблемы со здоровьем

frustrated ['fr?stre?t?d] – разочарованный, отчаявшийся

provide for [pr?'va?d f?:] – материально обеспечивать

asylum [?'sa?l?m] – приют

nursing home ['n?:s?? h??m] – дом престарелых

boarding school ['b?:d?? sku:l] – школа-интернат, пансион

corporal punishment ['k?:p(?)r?l 'p?n??m?nt] – телесное наказание

compete [k?m'pi:t] – состязаться, соревноваться

follow in one’s footsteps ['f?:l?? ?n w?nz 'f?tsteps] – идти по стопам кого-то

bachelor’s/master’s degree ['baet??l?z 'maest?z d??ri:] – степень бакалавра/магистра

have an impact (on) [haev aen '?mpaekt ?:n] – оказать сильное влияние (на)

be inspired (by) [bi: ?n'spa??d bai] – вдохновляться

observation skills [??bz?'ve???n sk?lz] – наблюдательность

deductive skills [d?'d?kt?v sk?lz] – дедуктивные способности

destiny ['dest?n?] – судьба

manuscript ['maenj?skr?pt] – рукопись

lose heart [lu:z h?:t] – унывать, падать духом, опускать руки

attempt [?'tempt] – пытаться

posthumously ['p?stj?m?sli] – посмертно