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ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE: A LIFE IN LETTERS
by Jon Lellenberg, Daniel Stashower and Charles Foley
The Penguin Press, November 2007
684 pages
$37.95
ISBN: 1594201358


Buy in the UK | Buy in Canada

Arthur Conan Doyle was a prolific writer. While the Sherlock Holmes stories are probably the best known of his works, he spent much of his adult life earning a living as a writer of non-fiction and non-Holmesian fiction.

A LIFE IN LETTERS gives readers a new perspective on the man. He wrote, as was fairly common in his time, what to us would be an amazing number of letters. Much of this book consists of the letters he wrote to his mother, beginning when he was eight years old, away at boarding school, and continuing until her death at the age of 83. There are also letters written to other family members, friends, and some business partners.

For those readers who think Holmes was the be-all and end-all of Conan Doyle’s life, this book will certainly come as something of a shock. He didn’t think nearly as much of Holmes as he did of some of his other works (THE WHITE COMPANY, for instance). He was glad the stories made money for him, but was far more involved in the writing of some of his historical novels.

Quite a bit of these personal writings have to do with money. In his younger years, there wasn’t much of it and he felt very responsible for the upkeep of his family. Later on, while there were still times when money was tight, it was clearly his delight to be able to provide for his mother, his siblings, and their families.

In his later years, Conan Doyle became a spokesperson for Spiritualism. He and his mother did not agree about this cause, so there is less about this important aspect of his life than one might expect. His political activities are well documented, as well as his actions during several wars.

A LIFE IN LETTERS was engrossing and interesting. There are several revelations about Conan Doyle’s life that, according to the notes, were not known before this book. The relationship between Conan Doyle and his mother was clearly one of affection and love; her letters to him are so blunt sometimes and yet so full of devotion. For those readers who like to delve into the private lives of authors, A LIFE IN LETTERS is a wonderful foray into the mind of the man who created Sherlock Holmes and so much more.

Reviewed by P. J. Coldren, December 2007

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Contact: Yvonne Klein (ymk@reviewingtheevidence.com)


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