Book Review: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Recommended For: Ages 12 and up

Rating: PG (for crime)

 A colonel receives five seeds in the mail...and dies within weeks. A young bride disappears immediately after her wedding. An old hat and a Christmas goose are the only clues to a stolen jewel. A son is accused of his father's murder.

 These mysteries-and many more-are brought to the house on Baker Street where detective Sherlock Holmes resides. No case is too tricky for the world's most famous sleuth and his incredible powers of deduction.

This book is a collection of some of the many short stories that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote about Sherlock Holmes.

Writing 4/5

 This book was easier to pay attention to than many old books, and each mystery was interesting and had something unique. Each story is separate, which made it hard to get into the next story because there wasn't anything connecting them. At the end of the stories they would wrap up very quickly. I wished there was a little more with the conclusion of each one.

Setting: 5/5

 The stories are set in the 1800s in London and other places in England in the country. The settings seem like every other book about that time and place, so I assume that it is accurate. The stories do not occur in chronological order. Some of them happen when Watson is married and some of them happen before he was married. 

Plot: 4/5

 Each plot is different and one of them doesn't even appear to be a crime at first. None of them are really complicated, since each is only about thirty pages long. I'm not sure how realistic all of the mysteries are and that is why I gave it 4/5. For part of each story, there is the client's story which usually takes a good portion of each short story. 

Characters: 5/5

 There are two  main characters: Watson and Sherlock Holmes. Sherlock Holmes is a genius who can figure things out from small details. He is a little strange but he is and more caring and upset about crime than is portrayed in the BBC TV show. Watson is the main character and the stories are as if he wrote them down. They are all from his point of view and so you know his confusion at each mystery.

I think that Sherlock Holmes is probably the most realistic mystery series that I have read and I enjoyed reading each mystery. If you enjoy mysteries, then I would recommend that you read this and the first two Sherlock Holmes books.