The doctor, and the detective and Arthur Conan Doyle

It has been said that if Arthur Conan Doyle had never written or done anything else of note but create Sherlock Holmes he would still be famous today, but that without his celebrated detective he might well have been forgotten. Such a circumstance would have been an unjust fate, for Conan Doyle's own life was as exciting and fascinating as that of any ripping yarn hero. Born into an illustrious Roman Catholic family, he suffered a difficult, poverty-stricken childhood with an alcoholic father. After training as a doctor, he abandoned medicine to pursue a literary career which brought him great wealth: he was the first block-buster popular novelist. No adventure or opportunity passed Arthur Conan Doyle by: he took a voyage on an Arctic whaler, was an all-round sportsman and inveterate traveler, popularized skiing in Switzerland, served as a doctor in the Boer War, twice stood as a prospective member of Parliament, advocated divorce law reform, invented safety aids in the Great War and famously championed against injustice. A man of enormous self-confidence, he had the courage of his convictions, knew where his duty lay and was never afraid to become embroiled in controversy: in later life, he conducted an exhaustive crusade to spread the doctrines of spiritualism, for which he was widely ridiculed and in the pursuit of which he spent a large portion of his fortune. He was also dictatorial, doggedly stubborn, rejected all criticism and would never admit he was wrong about anything. Arthur Conan Doyle was, in short, an enigma. - Jacket flap.