Belanger Books Sherlock Holmes and Other Readings Blog

Sherlock Gnomes: A Review The 21st Century revival of Sherlock Holmes may be reaching its limit. We've had two modern takes on the Great detective ( Sherlock and Elementary ), an action film version (the Robert Downey Jr. Sherlock Holmes films), and a traditional take on the detective in Russian (the 2013 series starring Igor Petrenko).  We now have the Gnome version in the children's film  Sherlock Gnomes, a fun if forgettable film with some surprising canonical references.  Please note that this is a film review and some of the information may be considered spoilers. The plot of the film begins with Gnomeo (James McAvoy) and Juliet (Emily Blunt) moving to a new "fixer upper" home with their garden gnome family.  While the gnome duo is away at a flower shop, all of their gnome family is kidnapped.  Never fear for Sherlock Gnomes (Johnny Depp) and Dr. Gnome Watson (Chiwetel Ejiofor) are on the case!  Sherlock Gnomes, Watson, Gnomeo, and Juliet t...

The first four Solar Pons books by August Derleth available on Kickstarter til March 28th Last Chance to Back Solar Pons on Kickstarter ! By the time this blog entry posts, there will be about 48 hours left to back the original Solar Pons books by August Derleth on Kickstarter . “Solar Pons came into being out of Sherlock Holmes . . . .” – August Derleth   In 1928, college student August Derleth wrote to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, asking if any more Sherlock Holmes adventures were going to be published. Upon receiving a negative reply, Derleth decided to provide some of his own. However, rather than relating more tales of Holmes and Dr. Watson, he ended up introducing the world to Solar Pons and Dr. Lyndon Parker, living in London during the 1920’s and 1930’s. Pons solved crimes using deduction and ratiocination, often referring to Holmes as “The Master” or “My illustrious predecessor”. Since his first appearance, Pons has been a favorite with Sherlockians. B...

The covers to our new editions of the first four Solar Pons books by August Derleth We have some exciting news at Belanger Books!  Once again, we are partnering with the Estate of August Derleth to bring you more Solar Pons collections. This time, we are publishing new editions of the long out of print original Solar Pons books by August Derleth.  Our plan is to publish the first four books in the series in June, and if all goes well, the remainder of the original seven books (plus an Apocrypha) sometime in the winter.  You can be the first person to get copies of the books (available as ebooks for the first time ever) by ordering from the Kickstarter link below! Solar Pons, Sherlock Holmes of Praed Street, New Editions “Solar Pons came into being out of Sherlock Holmes . . . .” – August Derleth   In 1928, college student August Derleth wrote to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, asking if any more Sherlock Holmes adventures were going to be published...