See Sherlock

Originally created in 1877 by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Sherlock Holmes, one of the first great fictional detectives, continues to be a well-known fictional hero.  He is known as well to movie goers and television viewers through the use of Doyle’s original works that have been transferred to the screen in a variety of ways.  Arthur Conan Doyle’s four novels and fifty-six short stories about Holmes and his illustrious sidekick Dr. Watson provide the basis for both reading and viewing pleasure.  Among those who enjoy the stories, Sherlock Holmes is considered to be an extremely adaptable character.  Considering the number of actors who have portrayed him, this must certainly be true.

The BBC television series Sherlock has brought Holmes and Watson to the forefront again for contemporary audiences by moving the original stories to the 21^st century.  The contemporary Holmes uses cell phones along with a number of technical tools as aids in solving crimes. Dr. John Watson supports Holmes’ endeavors and authors a blog.  Sherlock uses all of his powers of ratiocination to see inside the minds of the characters and thereby determine their motives.  The great stories that have been written for the screen are adaptations from Doyle’s works of fiction.  His first Holmes and Watson novel,  A Study in Scarlet, was published in 1887.  The complete short story collection was published in 1928.   

The Al Harris Library owns copies of all of the original works, so stop by the display and take a look at the collections of short stories, the novels, and other works that evolved from the original writing of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.  Check out a book and learn about the original characters and how they compare with Sherlock, Elementary, Sherlock Holmes starring Robert Downey Jr., and Young Sherlock Holmes, as well as the older versions starring Basil Rathbone and Jeremy Brett.