The Devil and Sherlock Holmes: Tales of Murder, Madness, and Obsession (2010) is a collection of 12 articles (essays) by American journalist David Grann.
Essays The essays were previously published between 2000 and 2009 in The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine, The New Republic and The Atlantic, and have been "updated and revised"."Deception And 'The Devil And Sherlock Holmes'", NPR, Talk of the Nation, March 9, 2010. The stories are about real-life mysteries, a "mosaic of ambition, deception, passion, and folly."The Devil and Sherlock Holmes, back-cover blurb, first edition.
Four of the stories have been filmed or optioned, and five of the stories have been collected in other "best" anthology volumes.See references in chart in this article. It is Grann's second book, after The Lost City of Z (2009) published the previous year, and his first collected anthology of essays.
Critical response In The New York Times, Sam Roberts called the book "riveting." Writing in Entertainment Weekly, critic Keith Staskiewicz gave the collection a grade of A: "This collection of David Grann's nonfiction, much of it from The New Yorker, is by turns horrifying, hilarious, and outlandish... These straightforward tales grip you as unrelentingly as the suckered appendages of the giant squid Grann attempts to track down in 'The Squid Hunter.' You might feel that some of the pieces skirt credibility, but remember, as Holmes himself once said, "Life is infinitely stranger than anything which the mind of man could invent."
Editions Grann, David. The Devil and Sherlock Holmes: Tales of Murder, Madness, and Obsession. March 9, 2010. Doubleday. (hardcover, first edition).
Contents Chapter numberPartChapter titleYear publishedSource(s)Related articlesAdaptations01Part 1Part 1 motto: "Any truth is better than indefinite doubt." (Sherlock Holmes in "The Adventure of the Yellow Face")Mysterious Circumstances2004The New Yorker, December 13, 2004.The Best American Crime Writing 2005Richard Lancelyn Green, :Category:Sherlock Holmes02Part 1Trial by Fire2009The New Yorker, September 7, 2009.Cameron Todd WillinghamTrial by Fire (2018), film directed by Edward Zwick03Part 1The Chameleon2008The New Yorker, August 11, 2008.Frédéric Bourdin04Part 1True Crime2008The New Yorker, February 11, 2008.The Best American Crime Reporting 2009Krystian BalaDark Crimes (2016), film directed by Alexandros Avranas05Part 1Which Way Did He Run?2002The New York Times Magazine, January 13, 2002.September 11 attacks06Part 2Part 2 motto: "A strange enigma is man!" (Sherlock Holmes in "The Sign of the Four")The Squid Hunter2004The New Yorker, May 24, 2004.Giant squid, Steve O'Shea07Part 2City of Water2003The New Yorker, September 1, 2003.Sandhog, Water infrastructure of New York CityOptioned for film by Paramount in 2010.08Part 2The Old Man and the Gun2003The New Yorker, January 27, 2003.The Best American Crime Writing 2004Forrest TuckerThe Old Man & the Gun (2018), film directed by David Lowery09Part 2Stealing Time2005The New Yorker, September 12, 2005.The Best American Sports Writing 2006Rickey Henderson10Part 3Part 3 motto: "All that was monstrous and inconceivably wicked in the universe." (Dr. Watson in "The Adventure of the Devil's Foot")The Brand2004The New Yorker, February 16, 2004.Aryan Brotherhood11Part 3Crimetown, U.S.A.2000The New Republic, July 10, 2000.Wise Guys: Stories of Mobsters from Jersey to VegasClint Willis. Wise Guys: Stories of Mobsters from Jersey to Vegas, 2003. pg.221James Traficant12Part 3Giving the 'Devil' His Due2001The Atlantic, June, 2001.Toto Constant
Notes
External links "Deception And 'The Devil And Sherlock Holmes'", NPR, Talk of the Nation, March 9, 2010. , interview in Nieman Storyboard, April 5, 2010.