In 2014, we are commemorating the hundredth anniversary of the commencement of World War I, so it seems a good idea to look at the novel that may not exactly have started the “war to end all wars,” but at least stirred up a nation. Though lacking Bond-style action, the book is well written, contains some great lines and still makes a good read today.The Riddle of the Sands was one of the books kept in the houseboat library in Arthur Ransome’s classic Swallows and Amazons series for the young.One of our oldest SMSA library members recommended Riddle recently as “still the best spy mystery story I’ve ever read.” She insists it’s a true story.The novel paved the way for the great “secret service” genre that includes John Buchan’s The Thirty-Nine Steps, the James Bond juggernaut and John le Carré’s espionage bestsellers.So strong was its impact that one critic later accused its author of almost single-handedly starting a European war.” The 2009 edition blurb claims The Riddle of the Sands “caused a sensation when it appeared in 1903.
Good reasons for revisiting Erskine Childers’ espionage novel The Riddle of the Sands, first published in 1903 and still being reprinted:
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