The Trouble with Harry: 02/20/25

The Trouble with Harry by Jack Trevor Story (1949) is about a troublesome man found dead and the village folks who have to deal with his remains. In its original form it's set in a small English village or a small Vermont village in the 1955 Hitchcock film.

The novel is really more of a novella. It's short and frankly can be read in the time it takes to watch the film (an hour and 43 minutes). It goes from character to character with dead Harry being a heavy and awkward MacGuffin.

The first problem: how did Harry die? The boy who is nearly shot by a hunter believes the hunter did it. The hunter believes it too until evidence is found to the contrary. The second question, is who is the man? The boy's mother knows who he is. The third problem is what to do with him? Figuring that out takes the entire village.

Now in most cases when there's a body, a limited set, and limited cast of characters, it figures the story is most likely a murder mystery. Given that Hitchcock adapted the story for film, a murder mystery seems even more likely. It's not, though. It plays on all the expectations of a murder mystery to be a very funny macabre comedy.

Five stars

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