Born on 22 May 1859 in Edinburgh, SIR ARTHUR CONAN DOYLE started writing stories as a student. With a repertoire of over thirty books, hundred and fifty short stories, essays, plays and poems, he earned the distinction of being one of the greatest short story writers ever, since Edgar Allan Poe. A master of all literary genres, his memorable creation is the invincible sleuth Sherlock Holmes whom the readers are introduced to in his first novel, A Study in Scarlet (1887). Such was the charisma of this Great Detective that when the author decided to kill Holmes in ‘His Last Bow’ (1893), he was compelled to bring Holmes back after vociferous demands from readers. A two-volume com- pendium, Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Novels & Stories 1 comprises some of the significant adventures of the iconoclastic detective—‘The Adventure of the Speckled Band,’ ‘The Musgrave Ritual,’ ‘A Scandal in Bohemia,’ and ‘The Five Orange Pips’ among others. The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes adds another dimension to this comprehensive collection. A war correspondent, a spiritualist, an athlete and a historian, the author was knighted for his contribution in a South African field hospital during the Boer War in 1902. He died on 7 July 1930 in Crowborough, Sussex.
