This remarkable annotated collection of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's
previously unpublished private correspondence offers unique insight
into one of the world's most popular authors. For the first time,
Conan Doyle emerges from the shadow of Sherlock Holmes, revealing a
man whose character and exploits rival that of his famous creation.
In particular, Conan Doyle's correspondence with his mother exposes
his endless search for fulfillment and success outside the Holmes
stories. At age sixteen Conan Doyle began studying medicine at
Edinburgh University. Just months shy of graduating, he made the
adventurous decision to accept a position as a surgeon on a whaling
ship heading to the Arctic. He returned to Edinburgh, graduated, and
struggled to establish his own medical practice while simultaneously
writing and promoting his stories. He suffered years of
disappointment as both doctor and author; yet, to his amazement, just
two months after the first Sherlock Holmes short stories, he had
garnered such a following that he completely abandoned medicine for
literature. As the public clamored endlessly for Sherlock Holmes,
Conan Doyle explored other pursuits: He was a doctor during the Boer
War, a World War I correspondent, and the foremost spokesman for
Spiritualism. As his life changed, Doyle's correspondence with his
mother remained constant. In his letters to "the Mam," Doyle shares
the dismay he felt over the critical reception of his other writing,
and as his irritation with the Holmes adventures mounts he announces
his desire to kill off the character. She is his confidante and
trusted counsel throughout her long life. The editors are known for
their expertise and scholarship on the works of Arthur Conan Doyle
and Sherlock Holmes. Daniel Stashower is an award-winning mystery
novelist and author of Teller of Tales, a widely praised biography of
Conan Doyle. Jon Lellenberg is the U.S. agent for the Conan Doyle
estate and author of The Quest for Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Charles
Foley is the writer's great-nephew and executor of the estate. Arthur
Conan Doyle: A Life in Letters will be a must-have collection for
readers interested in the author, Sherlock Holmes, and the Victorian
era.
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