The Baker Street Four, Vol. 1

   This book arrived on my "to be reviewed" stack in a unique way.

   My lovely wife serves on the local county library board, and her duties led her recently to visit Chicago for a gathering of like-minded folks.

   She attended a seminar that featured the creators of The Baker Street Four, a series of graphic novels published in France that follow the adventures of some of the children who are assistants to Sherlock Holmes.

   She was so impressed by them that she bought a copy of the first volume, and artist David Etien was kind enough to do a detailed sketch on the inside cover. (I think he was sweet on her.)

   As you can see,  the art is wonderful, bringing to life the bustling streets of Victorian England and peopling it with living, breathing characters, including the scrappy kids Billy, Tom and Charlie.

   (But wait, you say - who's the fourth member of the team? I puzzled on that a while and finally figured it out - it's Charlie's cat.)

   You won't see a lot of Sherlock in this volume, but you'll see why he trusts his young charges to be his eyes and ears on the street.

   They're smart (in a roughhewn way) and dedicated.

   The volume includes two stories - one where the trio must rescue a girl from a terrible fate, and another where a murderer is on the loose - and a riot is brewing.

   Written by J. B Djian and Olivier Legrand, the stories are clever and offer many surprises and insights on life in the 19th Century.

   Whether you're a fan of the Holmes stories or just enjoy a good kid gang tale, this is a very satisfying volume - and hopefully just the beginning for the adaptations for American audiences.

   I admit a little prejudice, since the creators were nice to my wife - but it's easy to give this a hearty recommendation, because it's outstanding work.

Grade: A

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