On the Trail of Arthur Conan Doyle
An Illustrated Devon Tour
By Brian W. Pugh & Paul R. Spiring
February 2008
Book Guild Publishing
Distributed By Trans-Atlantic Publications
ISBN: 9781846241987
125 pages, Illustrated, 5 1/2 x 8 3/4"
$28.95 Hardcover
On the Trail of Arthur Conan Doyle is an important contribution to the body of research on the creator of English literature s best loved detective. Between 1882 and 1923, Conan Doyle, the creator of the legendary character of Sherlock Holmes, visited Devon on no fewer than ten separate occasions and resided for no less than four months in total. This book sets these visits within the wider context of Conan Doyle s life and works.
The lives of two other men are inextricably bound up with Conan Doyle s experiences in Devon: Dr. George Turnavine Budd, who took him on as a partner at the Plymouth practice, and Bertram Fletcher Robinson, who played an essential part in conceiving and planning The Hound of the Baskervilles. The Hound of the Baskervilles is without doubt Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's most famous Sherlock Holmes story.
It has been adapted for film, stage and television and employed the talents of some of our finest actors. Similar treatment has also been afforded to another Doyle story entitled The Lost World that features a character called Professor George Challenger. On the Trail of Arthur Conan Doyle explores the extent to which Devon, Budd and Robinson influenced each of these stories and other works by Conan Doyle.
The authors have researched their subjects exhaustively and, as well as presenting fascinating portraits of Robinson and Budd; have unearthed new information about Conan Doyle himself. Included is a detailed tour of those parts of Devon associated with the three subjects of this study, commencing in Plymouth and ending in Torquay. This book includes a foreword by Roger Johnson (Editor: The Sherlock Holmes Journal) and features many previously unpublished photographs. A substantial bibliography, invaluable to both scholars and the casual reader, completes the volume.
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