"Elementary, my dear Watson!"

Those words have echoed around the world in many languages. They were spoken countless times by Sherlock Holmes, detective, the most famous character in English fiction, perhaps the most widely known fictional character in the world.

Holmes was, in fact, based on a very real person. Long ago, A. Conan Doyle acknowledged that he patterned his character after Dr. Joseph Bell, one of Doyle's professors at the University of Edinburgh medical school. Bell could diagnose people's symptoms and tell them details of their lives without their saying a word. He was rarely wrong.

If Doyle had been able to get patients right away, Sherlock Holmes might never have been born. After six years of unsuccessful medical practice, Doyle began to write. The first story was "A Study in Scarlet." It was acclaimed, and Sherlock Holmes began his flourishing career.

This volume includes, together with "A Study in Scarlet," these other notable stories: "The Sign of the Four," "A Case of Identity," "The Red-Headed League," "A Scandal in Bohemia," and "The Boscome Valley Mystery," all baffling, intriguing and enjoyable!
(front flap)