A sympathetic and illuminating portrait of the creator of one of the most famous characters in English literature. Hesketh Pearson was interested in the many contradictions in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - the conventional Scottish doctor who pursued the occult, was interested in spiritualism and fairies, invented the immensely popular Sherlock Holmes yet came in time to detest his creation. Pearson's very readable portrait is by turns admiring, witty and moving.