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This is a difficult book for me to review. For almost ten years, I have managed the Database of Sherlockian Pastiches, Parodies and Related Fiction, so I am very involved with the subject of this current book. It is difficult for me to realize that, to most Sherlockians, this Literature is incidental rather than central to their concern with matters about Sherlock Holmes. I have been taking these matters very seriously for the last ten years and more, so this book, which is aimed at more conventional fans of Sherlock Holmes, seems a bit odd to me. It took me quite a while to see what the author was trying to do simply because I am so wrapped up in the subject of pastiches and parodies by my own interest (obsession?) with the subject that I am attempting to collect copies of the more than 11,500 such items known to me. I have been collecting such items for more than ten years and I always seem to be about three or four thousand items behind in my search. This book is an introduction to the wonderful world of the most copied fiction author in History. No other fictional character in Literature has been copied so extensively. Even Judge Dee, who is definitely NOT fictional, has only had a thousand or two fictional mysteries set in Tang China written about his adventures. To serious scholars of pastiches, this book may seem a bit sloppy or not properly footnoted, but neither of us are the audience this book is written for. This book is written as an introduction to the rich world of pastiches and parodies that have followed right on the heels of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s publications. Over the hundred and twenty five plus years since the publication of A Study in Scarlet, almost every author of mysteries has tried to write a Sherlockian pastiche/parody. Some have written short stories and some have written novels. There have been stories in verse, radio programs, movies, cartoon series, TV broadcasts, an Opera and a Tap dance review as well as puppet shows, children’s plays and who knows what else published with the name “Sherlock” attached to it. This book includes a broad selection of early writings about Sherlock. Some of the items included or cited were unknown to me, which is a difficult thing to do. Many were obscure and difficult to find and some are well-known among the community of Sherlock Holmes fans. I am sure anyone will find items new to them among this selection and knowledgeable fans will all have alternative selections that should have been included; different alternative selections! This is a fun book. It will surprise many, astound a few and amuse almost anyone who reads it. Reviewed by: Philip K. Jones, July, 2014Read full review