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A review by mad_about_books
Conan Doyle for the Defense: How Sherlock Holmes's Creator Turned Real-Life Detective and Freed a Man Wrongly Imprisoned for Murder by Margalit Fox
5.0
Let me begin by saying that I am a huge fan of Sherlock Holmes. I started reading the stories by Conan Doyle in elementary school (no pun intended). Jeremy Brett's portrayal… iconic! Robert Downey, Jr… broadened my appreciation of the character. Benedict Cumberbatch… be still my beating heart. Jonny Lee Miller… let's go back to iconic. All of these enactments have done one thing; they have perpetuated the myth that is Sherlock Holmes, the creation of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Writers write what they know. Yes, they extrapolate and exaggerate, but the essence of great stories is the truth of personal experience upon which they are built. Conan Doyle was no different.
The early 20th century was still heavily under the influence of the Victorian Era which was both a time of progress and industry alongside extreme poverty and class consciousness. This was a time of nationalism that singled out anyone who was 'other.' In CONAN DOYLE FOR THE DEFENSE, the term "convenient other" is prominent. If someone fit into that category, they were liable for whatever wrong the police might decide they committed. A "convenient other" was no more than a scapegoat, something with which we are all too familiar today.
This is as much a biography of Conan Doyle as it is an exposé of system that put an innocent man within steps of the gallows. As you may, or may not know, Conan Doyle trained and worked as a physician. His professor and mentor, Dr. Joseph Bell, taught him the value of keen, and minute observation, the one quality so admired in Sherlock Holmes. Thus Conan Doyle's medical training aided him in the creation of the great detective, and, by extrapolation, made him a keen investigator in his own right. Remember, the best stories come from what you know. From there, a little imagination allows knowledge to bloom into story.
This is a book for those who read true crime, or that read history, or who, like me, have been captivated by the myth that is Sherlock Holmes. To say that I enjoyed this book is surely not enough. I felt immersed in a bit of history and found new insight into the mind of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.
The early 20th century was still heavily under the influence of the Victorian Era which was both a time of progress and industry alongside extreme poverty and class consciousness. This was a time of nationalism that singled out anyone who was 'other.' In CONAN DOYLE FOR THE DEFENSE, the term "convenient other" is prominent. If someone fit into that category, they were liable for whatever wrong the police might decide they committed. A "convenient other" was no more than a scapegoat, something with which we are all too familiar today.
This is as much a biography of Conan Doyle as it is an exposé of system that put an innocent man within steps of the gallows. As you may, or may not know, Conan Doyle trained and worked as a physician. His professor and mentor, Dr. Joseph Bell, taught him the value of keen, and minute observation, the one quality so admired in Sherlock Holmes. Thus Conan Doyle's medical training aided him in the creation of the great detective, and, by extrapolation, made him a keen investigator in his own right. Remember, the best stories come from what you know. From there, a little imagination allows knowledge to bloom into story.
This is a book for those who read true crime, or that read history, or who, like me, have been captivated by the myth that is Sherlock Holmes. To say that I enjoyed this book is surely not enough. I felt immersed in a bit of history and found new insight into the mind of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.