The Case Of The Mythical Monkeys by Erle Stanley Gardner

 I always thought Perry Mason was an odd hero for the 50's. Finding out the first book was published in 1933 made more sense, and the 30's were less conformist than the 50's. I struggled a bit with the t.v. show as a kid, which I saw in reruns as I was not born in time to see the original run in the late 50's and early 60's. The reason I struggled with it is the same as the reason I found him an odd hero for the law and order 50's. See, Perry Mason is a man who is dedicated to justice, but not strictly to the law. In fact he seems more than willing to bend and stretch the law in pursuit of justice. In fact he seems to get pleasure from doing so, even when not strictly necessary, if it will allow him to spring a trap on the officers of the law. He is always the smartest person in the room, 3 steps ahead of everyone else. This also stands in contrast to the more common everyman hero of the era, who instead of intellectual superiority holds an overabundance of "common sense" and rigid determination to uphold the law at any cost. 

I have grown to enjoy Perry Mason, while at the same time being frustrated by what to me seem his more arbitrary and needlessly confrontational antics. But the frustration can be part of the fun. I enjoy the show, the novels, the new show, and recently I have learned there were a series of movies made long before Raymond Burr took the mantle on television that I am anxious to seek out. But this post is about the book, The Case Of The Mythical Monkeys, the 59th of the series. It's pretty standard fare for a Perry Mason mystery. An innocent young women gets entangled in a wildly improbable murder scenario and seeks Mason's help in keeping out of prison. In this case the woman is a secretary for a novelist who rose to fame writing a very sexy and prurient story. She ends up stranded in a mountain cabin while carrying out some work for her boss, and wakes up to find the man who had let her enter the cabin was gone and in his place is a dead man.

There are the scandalous elements of loose women, dual lives, gangster ties, and unfaithful husbands. There is the dense plot made more so by being in such a compact book. There is the proliferation of clues, red herrings, and subtle insinuations that make the mysteries a tad more entertaining than other such fare from the period. But even with all the twists and misdirects, the solution still makes sense, even if it is a tad rushed at the end. And the road to the conclusion is logical, to me at least since I did discern what had really happened before it was revealed in the book, not not so much before as to cause me to lose interest. D.A. Hamilton Berger comes across as more of antagonist here than usual, though he always is to a certain degree. Lt. Tragg comes across as more of a reluctant ally to Mason than usual. Paul Drake is his usual efficient but complaining self, while Della Street continues to be competent and insightful and underutilized.

One complaint about Perry Mason is similar to a complaint that I have about Doc Savage. At times it seems like he has been surrounded by bright, competent people only so that they can be amazed at how much more bright and competent he is than they are. This isn't entirely fair, as Paul Drake almost always brings him some information that is vital to the case, but it is always Perry who alone sees how the information fits into the puzzle (with the exception of Tragg, who is often shown as hostile and stubborn but never incompetent and usually arrives at the solution just after Mason). It's not quite as blatant as with Doc Savage though, and thus doesn't spoil the story quite as much. One of the elements I enjoyed in the newer version of the show was the more human and fallible portrayal of Mason, which if anything tended too far in the other direction. In the end the complaint is a small one, and I always enjoy the stories. Some will say more time should be spent exploring the recurring characters, because it seems we end up knowing more about the lives of Gladys, the client, and Mauvis, her boss, than we do of Perry, Paul or Della. And this is true, but it's also true that these stories are more about the mystery and the courtroom maneuvers than they are about these 3 characters, even Perry Mason. This is a quick read, a perfect airport or bus book, and it should keep your interest through to the end.