Dangerous Work: Diary of an Arctic Adventure - Couverture rigide

We revere Arthur Conan Doyle as the creator of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, but he was far more than just the great storyteller of his age: There was a streak of the adventurer in Conan Doyle s make-up, reflected in his passion for boxing matches, outdoor sports, and war zones. While still a medical student, a very young Arthur shipped out for six months on an Arctic whaler, turning twenty-one just 600 miles from the North Pole. His diary of this dangerous work makes irresistible reading, especially when annotated by two of the most knowledgeable Conan Doyle scholars alive. As a supplement, Jon Lellenberg and Daniel Stashower include four magnificent pieces of writing inspired by this youthful adventure: Conan Doyle s reflections on The Glamour of the Arctic and Life on a Greenland Whaler, his most haunting ghost story, The Captain of the Polestar, and one of the most dramatic of all Sherlock Holmes mysteries, The Adventure of Black Peter. This is, in short, an important book for scholars, but also a tremendously exciting one for readers. --Michael Dirda, author of On Conan Doyle

For 130 years, this amazing diary, written by the creator of Sherlock Holmes, has lain hidden. Only now have Sir Arthur s descendants consented to its publication. It is probably one of the most exciting literary finds of recent years, for it sheds an entirely new light on a writer we thought we knew so well. --Philip Hoare, Daily Mail

Worthwhile not least for Conan Doyle s whimsical illustrations. . . . In books by and about Arthur Conan Doyle, all roads lead to Holmes, and this book is, not at all regrettably, no exception. . . . Dangerous Work is the richer for showing not just Conan Doyle s proto-Holmesian work, but also his tendencies to romanticize his experience and to enliven it with a well-chosen white lie. One of the most amusing things that emerges when all of his Arctic writings are brought together is just how often he revisited and revised his memories of the expedition. --Laura Marsch, New Republic

In February 1880, when Arthur Conan Doyle was only twenty years old, he embarked upon 'the first real outstanding adventure in my life,' seven months as a ship's surgeon on an Arctic whaler. The voyage took the young Conan Doyle into unknown regions and plunged him into dangerous and bloody work on the ice floes of the Arctic seas. His unforgettable adventure was echoed in a number of his early landmarks as a writer. A ghost story based on the experience, 'The Captain of the Pole-Star,' got him noticed in publishing circles as a promising young writer, and a magazine article called 'The Glamour of the Arctic' won him the respect of intrepid Arctic explorers. During the voyage, Conan Doyle kept a detailed diary. This incredible document, hidden from public view for more than a century, is written in his clear handwriting and is illustrated with many charming pen-and-ink sketches of scenes of life on board and of the sea-creatures and other sights he saw. It provides a vivid account of the coming of age of the young man who would go on to create Sherlock Holmes, and of a life at sea that no longer exists. This book will feature a facsimile of this remarkable diary, with a transcript, as well as several non-fiction and fiction pieces based on the experience, including the Sherlock Holmes story 'The Adventure of the Black Peter.' It will also include photographs of the ship, its captain, and young Conan Doyle on deck. The publication of this unknown diary will be welcomed by all fans of Arthur Conan Doyle.