Ages ago I found an online reader link to a book. It looked interesting, but not one I wanted to read right away. I put it in my saved links and forgot about it, until one day I was going through those saved links and found Arthur Who Wrote Sherlock (Who Wrote Classics) by Linda Bailey again.
It is a clever telling of the life and times of the author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The narrator tells us this story as if the two of us (narrator and reader) are sitting down, having a cup of tea and chatting like new friends. The voice is light, clever, amusing and informative. While there could be more facts, as Bailey just touches on the surface points and focuses on his relationship with his most famous creation, Sherlock Holmes, it was a good introduction to things. The love/hate relationship he had with Holmes (to the point of even killing him off) is something we do not always see and there are extras to help fill in a few spots.
However, due to the picture book format, it might turn off the older readers (as it could go up to about second or third grade) but the text/story itself is good for all ages. Fantastically fun illustrations by Isabelle Follath give things a realistic touch but are also a bit “dreamy or airy” and not completely solid. They are enjoyable, and help lighten the mood of a biographical book.
Overall, I was happily impressed with things. I was expecting a traditional biography, but got his instead. It works well in the classroom, or for just fun reading for almost all ages (which of course, includes adults).