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A review by rotorguy64
The Insidious Dr. Fu-Manchu by Sax Rohmer
2.0
There's a certain romanticism, these days, surrounding pup literature. One does well to remember that not all of it is good, and that some books do not have a higher standing in literary circles because they're bad, not because they're too unpretentious to appeal to the academicians in their ivory tower. Some books stumbled into popularity by chance or because they appealed to some base instinct in their audience.
Every chapter of The Insidious Dr. Fu-Manchu reads the same. They all follow the same formula, until the end of the book, when the thing is wrapped up:
Denis Nayland Smith and Dr. Petrie, the narrator, travel to the location of some person who knows too much, or who is the next target of Dr. Fu Manchu, or whatever. On the way, Smith hypes Dr. Fu Manchu and the existential threat he presents to the white race. On arrival, they, find the person they're seeking dead under mysterious circumstances, and go on to solve the mystery behind the murder. They find Dr. Fu Manchu sitting lazily behind his desk, which invariably scares Dr. Petrie to death. They charge towards him like fools, end in a death trap, then they're freed, usually by Karamaneh, Fu Manchus slave girl. Dr. Petrie and Karamaneh share some intimate moment, then Karamaneh flees, and then the plot is repeated. This happens over and over, one dopamine rush in the audience chasing another. No wonder this book became a hit. The formula is effective, but it's shallow. Perhaps ironically, it's the same one used in some early kung fu movies, in which fight scene chases fight scene, the plot serving only to hold them together.
This book is racist. Don't tell me it isn't. Arabs, Indians and other Asiatics flock under the banner of Dr. Fu Manchu, a Chinaman, to destroy the white race, which is a synonym for "the British". Don't tell me it's the spirit of the times, I've read my share of books from around Rohmers age and most weren't so racist. It's true ideas such as his were still current in the early twentieth century, particularly in the anglophone world and in Germany, but they were not inevitable. There is certainly no rational basis for believing that a Mandarin, a Thuggee and a Sheikh would work together to bring the downfall of the British Empire due to some asiatic racial consciousness they share. That idea is just preposterous, and it was as stupid in Rohmers day as it is now.
One cannot find a shred of higher thought in Sax Rohmers novel. There are no greater truths it reveals about the human psyche, civilization, the cosmos, or God. It's entirely shallow entertainment, not some forgotten classic. [a:Jack London|1240|Jack London|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1680473186p2/1240.jpg], [a:Robert E. Howard|66700|Robert E. Howard|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1210954603p2/66700.jpg], [a:H.P. Lovecraft|9494|H.P. Lovecraft|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1299165714p2/9494.jpg], those are great, these authors are remembered for good reason. Rohmer is not playing in the same league, not if this book is any indication.
Every chapter of The Insidious Dr. Fu-Manchu reads the same. They all follow the same formula, until the end of the book, when the thing is wrapped up:
Denis Nayland Smith and Dr. Petrie, the narrator, travel to the location of some person who knows too much, or who is the next target of Dr. Fu Manchu, or whatever. On the way, Smith hypes Dr. Fu Manchu and the existential threat he presents to the white race. On arrival, they, find the person they're seeking dead under mysterious circumstances, and go on to solve the mystery behind the murder. They find Dr. Fu Manchu sitting lazily behind his desk, which invariably scares Dr. Petrie to death. They charge towards him like fools, end in a death trap, then they're freed, usually by Karamaneh, Fu Manchus slave girl. Dr. Petrie and Karamaneh share some intimate moment, then Karamaneh flees, and then the plot is repeated. This happens over and over, one dopamine rush in the audience chasing another. No wonder this book became a hit. The formula is effective, but it's shallow. Perhaps ironically, it's the same one used in some early kung fu movies, in which fight scene chases fight scene, the plot serving only to hold them together.
This book is racist. Don't tell me it isn't. Arabs, Indians and other Asiatics flock under the banner of Dr. Fu Manchu, a Chinaman, to destroy the white race, which is a synonym for "the British". Don't tell me it's the spirit of the times, I've read my share of books from around Rohmers age and most weren't so racist. It's true ideas such as his were still current in the early twentieth century, particularly in the anglophone world and in Germany, but they were not inevitable. There is certainly no rational basis for believing that a Mandarin, a Thuggee and a Sheikh would work together to bring the downfall of the British Empire due to some asiatic racial consciousness they share. That idea is just preposterous, and it was as stupid in Rohmers day as it is now.
One cannot find a shred of higher thought in Sax Rohmers novel. There are no greater truths it reveals about the human psyche, civilization, the cosmos, or God. It's entirely shallow entertainment, not some forgotten classic. [a:Jack London|1240|Jack London|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1680473186p2/1240.jpg], [a:Robert E. Howard|66700|Robert E. Howard|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1210954603p2/66700.jpg], [a:H.P. Lovecraft|9494|H.P. Lovecraft|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1299165714p2/9494.jpg], those are great, these authors are remembered for good reason. Rohmer is not playing in the same league, not if this book is any indication.