The Sherlock Holmes Illustrated Omnibus (Adventures / Hound / Memoirs [12 stories] / Return)

Here for the iirst time are all the Sherlock Holmes stories which Sidney Paget illus- strated, in facsimile, as they originally appeared in Strand Magazine in the 1890s and 1900s. Although two long stories had previously been published elsewhere, it was in the pages of Strand that Sherlock Holmes really at- tracted the enormous following which has been his ever since. As Leslie Fiedler says in his Introduction, 'the face we are likely to recall when we think Of Sherlock Holmes is not the invention of Conan Doyle' but that of his most important il- lustrator, Sidney Paget. Paget became in effect Holmes' 'co-creator, his author's collaborator. It seems therefore, only fit- ting that in this edition the true text - icon and words — be reproduced as it first appeared in The Strand.'

The story goes that Paget was commis- sioned by mistake, in place of his brother Walter, the illustrator of Rider Haggard and Robert Louis Stevenson. By a nice twist Sidney did in fact use Walter's features as his model for Holmes. The only regret is that Sidney Paget died in 1908 and so did not illustrate the later stories.

In the past only those lucky enough to own a set Of T be Strand Magaqine have been able to appreciate how the flavour of these marvellous stories is brought Out when accompanied by the Paget illustra- tions, but this double pleasure is now available to everyone.