"Let Me Recommend This Book" [SIGN]

I think we're in the midst of a Sherlockian / Doylean renaissance - but I'll leave the full premise of that statement for another post. In the meantime, if you've been living under a rock for the past few months, then let me give you just the tip of the iceberg - particularly as it relates to two new books.

Jon Lellenberg, BSI ("Rodger Prescott"), Daniel Stashower, BSI ("Thurston"), and Charles Foley, BSI ("Marlow Bates") co-edited a massive volume of original letters and produced Arthur Conan Doyle: A Life in Letters. I won't go into the full details, as I've previously written about it. But what I will recommend (in addition to buying the book) is that you listen to the latest episode of I Hear of Sherlock Everywhere, where Burt Wolder and I interview Jon & Dan.

The episode runs nearly an hour and is a fascinating look inside the creative process behind editing and writing such a major book. Especially interesting is their view of the subject matter, both before and after their time spent with the letters.

While you're there, please do consider subscribing to the show (it's free) and telling your friends about it. We need your help to grow our listener base.

There's another biography of Conan Doyle that is being released: The Man Who Created Sherlock Holmes: the Life and Times of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle by Andrew Lycett, who has also written a biography of Ian Fleming, the author of the James Bond books. I haven't had a chance to review this one yet, but I do plan to have Andrew on the podcast in early 2008. Stay tuned!

In the meantime, you might have a look at a Times Literary Supplement article, The Ghosts of Conan Doyle by Dinah Birch. It's a nice overview of the two books and quite frankly, an excellent piece of writing. To wit:

It is odd that so much comfort is to be had from Sherlock Holmes, given the brutal violence of his adventures. Not only are those who cross his path routinely shot, bludgeoned, or knifed, they run the risk of being starved, buried alive, attacked by huge and frenzied hounds, killed by horses, jellyfish, or venomous snakes, asphyxiated with toxic vapours, afflicted with foul diseases, or crushed in giant iron presses. They might lose a thumb or an ear; occasionally they lose their minds. Yet Holmes is the most consoling of literary icons. He cannot always prevent crime or punish the criminal, but he never fails to explain what has happened, and how, and why. The prosaic Watson likes to claim that his hero is infallible because he scorns the emotional baggage that befuddles the judgement of lesser men. In fact these stories are tense with feeling, for Holmes’s hatred of wrongdoing is a passion rather than an intellectual commitment.

Indeed. Enjoy these times. We are rich indeed to have such a wealth of resources.