'Jewel Mysteries' Reading, Research & Creative Writing

‘Dark was falling from a dull and humid sky, and the lamps were beginning to struggle for brightness in Piccadilly, when the opal of Carmalovitch was first put into my hand . . .’

Written in an engaging style similar to that of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (author of the ‘Sherlock Holmes’ mysteries), these stories feature the entertaining experiences of a jeweller with a knack for solving mysteries, which he encounters as part of his unique position as a friend both to the wealthy and to the police. They will be of interest to readers who relish a certain Victorian type of atmosphere and plot that includes a fair amount of character study - in addition to being entertaining, they offer instructive food for thought regarding how greed and vanity affect human character.

Contents

Six of the stories from the original collection are included here.

Following each story are four possible assignments that focus on descriptive writing and research. The student may complete as many of them as the teacher sees fit. The themes of the assignments are:

• a creative description of a place or concept

• a creative character description

• a long writing assignment involving retelling part or all of the story

• and a research assignment related to the story (on the topics of jewellery, safes, precious stones, etc.).

The student may also find themselves inspired to write their own mystery, in which case they can refer to Pemberton’s stories (or the plot summaries) for inspiration, their own completed assignments for ready character descriptions and accurate research, and the tips in the ‘Write Your Own Mystery, Tips and Worksheets’ appendix for guidelines and worksheets to help with planning and writing!

Bonus! Now includes a quick-reference sheet of images of precious stones, so students can keep an image in mind as they read.

Note: This resource might be a good choice for National Storytelling Week (30 January - 6 February).