A Study in Scarlet (Illustrated Classics): A Sherlock Holmes Graphic Novel (edition 2010)

Turning out to be a solid series and with all the Holmes hype running around a good entry into the books. ( )

A true-to-story rendition of Arthur Conan Doyle's “A Study in Scarlett”, this graphic novel follows Watson as he meets and moves in with Sherlock Holmes, only to get caught up in his world of intuition and deduction. People come to Sherlock to help them solve mysteries, and with his keen intelligence it does not usually take him too long to figure it out. That is until a new murder case that turns into a double murder has his mind wheeling a little quicker than normal. A man is killed without any wound, and the word rache is written on the wall. This is followed shortly by the stabbing of the man's friend. As is with the book, this is Watson's account of Sherlock solving the crime, always several steps ahead of the authorities.

Ian Edgington does a good job of summarizing the novel into this form so that the plot is the same. The illustrations in this book, by I.N.J. Culbard, also use the novels descriptions of the characters to a great effect so that it is obvious to any fan who each person is supposed to be. The drawings themselves are very true to life. It it not too busy, and the central idea of the frame is always in focus. He plays around with distance, as in one frame there will be a close up of Sherlock's eye and in the next you will see the characters from a great distance, sitting in a room. The frame sizes do not follow any order, instead having the size depicted by what the illustration is. The colours are rather dark, but it suits the story and time period.

This graphic novel was very enjoyable and easy to read. It told the story without being bogged down by detail, and the illustrations complemented the text rather than taking it over. This format could be a good introduction for young readers to Sherlock Holmes, whose novels would likely be a bit too advanced. While it was a quick read for me, it was still very engaging and enjoyable and so it would likely appeal to adults who are also a fan of the detective. The illustrations are very well done, with very detailed backgrounds. One image in particular I enjoyed was of Watson reading a letter Sherlock had just received. The action of the letter is drawn inside the cameo of Watson's profile, an easy way to indicate this image is not current time, but rather the imagination of the reader. I could see that someone who is a loyal Sherlock fan may not enjoy this book as the descriptions and characters may be different than they imagined, but I would recommend this to any fans who can appreciate the story in a new format.

This graphic novel does not appear to have won any awards, but the readers of this site have given it five stars, as have I. ( )

While I was parusing my library's catalog I ran across this graphic novel of the Sherlock Holmes book I had just finished. With the story still fresh in mind I decided to check this out.

Now I have read a total of three graphic novels and I should know by now that they are not my thing. This book followed the story faithfully but the images did not fit the visuals in my head and I was disappointed. ( )

Reason for Reading: This was a Cybils '10 nominee and I hadn't read it by the time judging was due as it was not a contender by that time and I'm just now getting to it.

I was a young teenager when I read through all of Doyle's Sherlock Holmes and since then I've only reread the occasional short story as it appears in anthologies that cross my path so my memory is dim on the book. A bit brighter on the various movie versions but that is still some time ago as I don't watch much TV anymore; all this to say I can't really compare to the original. What I can say though is that this was a wonderful read that certainly had the atmosphere of Doyle's Sherlock down pat and the both Holmes and Watson came across as genuine. This is the very first Sherlock Holmes story, so it is a treat to watch how the famous pair meet up and begin their detecting together. I think the author may have gone just a little soft on both Sherlock, making him just not quite that bit as egotistical and Watson, is just a little bit less awestruck and aware of Holmes' faults. This adds just a touch of originality to the adaptation as does the artwork which depicts Holmes in the familiar tall, long angular-faced personage (that both Rathbone and Irons brought to his character) but with a more frequent smile on his face. Watson is not a typical depiction at all, as he is suitably dressed, slim, fit and an expert in his own fields. This is an enticing murder case which brings two cultures together and starts off with a perplexing murder. Edginton & Culbard have done a wonderful adaption of this classic bringing it to a new generation of readers through the graphic medium. Highly recommended. I will try to read the others in the series as well. ( )

Review from Badelynge.
This isn't the first time A study in Scarlet has been adapted into a graphic novel but it is still a welcome addition. Ian Edginton is very faithful to Doyle's story. The book is quite pleasing all round. Ian Culbard delivers a style of art that doesn't ape the Strand illustrations, rather he chooses to caricature the characters using Doyle's descriptions. Everyone is instantly recognizable throughout. A narrow palette of colours is used, mainly all shades of brown and blue, with red (or scarlet) usually reserved for depicting blood. Much atmosphere is gained by the colour choices and by the way that available light is used realistically. The tricky hurdle of the lengthy back story sequence is nicely vaulted by constantly bringing the visuals back to the storyteller with Sherlock Holmes and co listening. All in all very good. I'm always most loyal to the original text but this stands up well. ( )