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9780761361893

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Adapting Holmes stories into comics is very challenging, which makes these books all the more impressive. Very little happens in a typical Holmes story: something goes wrong, the detectives interview a series of people, the hero sits around thinking, and eventually he confronts the culprit. Comics are a visual medium, and in the same way that readers of novels--in which it's perfectly all right to describe at length the thought processes of a brilliant detective--tend to enjoy detective stories better than moviegoers do, comics readers tend to want to see things moving...not smart people sitting in chairs and thinking deeply. Sophie Rohrbach's illustrations are cunningly designed to address this challenge. She moves the point of view around dramatically, zooming in on Watson, for example, when he finally figures out something Holmes realized an hour ago, or swiveling the perspective so that we fail to see the face of a suspect whose identity would eliminate the mystery. The creators also interject short bits of narration on Watson's notepad to maintain the sense that Watson is writing down these adventures shortly after he has experienced them. The result is a mystery that is always engaging, even when the action is mild. --Teacher Librarian --Journal These graphic novel-style adaptations of Holmes's adventures are well suited to middle graders. The dialogue is reminiscent of Conan Doyle's writing yet easier to follow. The illustrations' cartoon characters are appealing, but the heavy black lines and dark palette are sometimes intrusive. --The Horn Book Guide --Journal

These graphic novel-style adaptations of Holmes's adventures are well suited to middle graders. The dialogue is reminiscent of Conan Doyle's writing yet easier to follow. The illustrations' cartoon characters are appealing, but the heavy black lines and dark palette are sometimes intrusive. --The Horn Book Guide --Journal Adapting Holmes stories into comics is very challenging, which makes these books all the more impressive. Very little happens in a typical Holmes story: something goes wrong, the detectives interview a series of people, the hero sits around thinking, and eventually he confronts the culprit. Comics are a visual medium, and in the same way that readers of novels--in which it's perfectly all right to describe at length the thought processes of a brilliant detective--tend to enjoy detective stories better than moviegoers do, comics readers tend to want to see things moving...not smart people sitting in chairs and thinking deeply. Sophie Rohrbach's illustrations are cunningly designed to address this challenge. She moves the point of view around dramatically, zooming in on Watson, for example, when he finally figures out something Holmes realized an hour ago, or swiveling the perspective so that we fail to see the face of a suspect whose identity would eliminate the mystery. The creators also interject short bits of narration on Watson's notepad to maintain the sense that Watson is writing down these adventures shortly after he has experienced them. The result is a mystery that is always engaging, even when the action is mild. --Teacher Librarian --Journal

Author Information

Murray Shaw is a kitchen designer and a writer of books for children about Sherlock Holmes.

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