Sherlock Holmes: une vie [Sherlock Holmes: a life] (review)

Abstract

Reviewed by: Sherlock Holmes: une vie [Sherlock Holmes: a life] Nadia Boucheta Translated by Hasmig Chahinian Sherlock Holmes: une vie [Sherlock Holmes: a life]. André-François Ruaud, Xavier Mauméjean. Lyon: Les Moutons électriques, 2011. (Series: La bibliothèque rouge, n° 20). 523 pages. “La bibliothèque rouge” [the red library] series celebrates the great figures of popular literature. Each volume is a character’s biography, conceived as if the character was a real human being. Researchers draw on the authors’ original texts to highlight this life. The editors have decided to renew the series to mark its sixth anniversary. André-François and Xavier Ruaud Mauméjean had previously co-authored a biography of Sherlock Holmes, Les nombreuses vies de Sherlock Holmes [The many lives of Sherlock Holmes], published in 2005 as the second title in this series. In 2011, they decided to return to the character and carry out a more thorough biography, attempting to reach the man behind the legend. In order to achieve their goal, they used the established canon of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, which consists of four novels and fifty-six short stories published between 1887 and 1930. But to further detail their research, they expanded their study to additional texts published by Adrian Conan Doyle1 and Maurice Leblanc1 as well as texts written by the original author but not included in the canon. The chapters cover minutely the imagined life of Sherlock Holmes in chronological order. His parents, his brother (Mycroft), his childhood, his adolescence are reviewed. Then comes the meeting with Dr. Watson, followed by a description of the years they lived in Baker Street. The separation years and the consequent return to Baker Street are also mentioned. Finally, the last years of the detective’s life are fully documented. This biography, illustrated by a rich iconography (posters, drawings, photographs) includes a bibliography and texts that pay tribute to the character. The authors have managed to bring out the man behind the legend, a man with his flaws and his qualities, a truly human character, depicted with such strength and power that some readers might be led to believe that Sherlock Holmes really existed. [End Page 83] This acclaimed and imitated emblematic detective has had an impact on generations of readers and is still a role model, carved in our collective memory. This biography pays tribute to him, and, through him, to the formidable writing skills of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, whose hero has surpassed his creator in fame. Hasmig Chahinian Bibliothèque nationale de France, CNLJ-JPL Notes 1. Adrian Malcolm Conan Doyle was the youngest son of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. He wrote, with the assistance of John Dickson Carr, additional Sherlock Holmes stories, gathered in a volume titled The Exploits of Sherlock Holmes. Adrian Malcolm was his father’s literary executor. (Translator’s note). 2. Maurice Leblanc, a French writer, is the creator of Arsène Lupin, “the gentleman thief.” Sherlock Holmes first appears in his work in Sherlock Holmes arrive trop tard [Sherlock Holmes arrives too late], a short story published in the journal Je sais tout [I know everything] in 1906. After a formal protest from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Sherlock Holmes was changed to Herlock Sholmès. He reappears in Arsène Lupin contre Herlock Sholmès [Arsène Lupin vs. Herlock Sholmes] featuring two adventures in which the characters are engaged in a match of wits. (Translator’s note). Copyright © 2012 Bookbird, Inc