{"product_id":"the-narrative-of-john-smith","title":"The Narrative of John Smith","description":"\u003cp\u003eBefore there was the astute detective Sherlock Holmes and his capable compatriot Watson  there was the opinionated Everyman John Smith. In 1883  when he was just twenty-three  Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote The Narrative of John Smith while he was living in Portsmouth and struggling to establish himself as both a doctor and a writer. He had already succeeded in having a number of short stories published in leading magazines of the day  such as Blackwoods  All the Year Round  London Society  and the Boys Own Paperbut as was the accepted practice of literary journals of the time  his stories had been published anonymously. Thus  Conan Doyle knew that in order to truly establish his name as a writer  he would have to write a novel. That novelthe first he ever wrote and only now published for the first timeis The Narrative of John Smith.  Many of the themes and stylistic tropes of his later writing  including his first Sherlock Holmes story  A Study in Scarletpublished in 1887can be clearly seen. More a series of ruminations than a traditional novel  The Narrative of John Smith is of considerable biographical importance and provides an exceptional window into the mind of the creator of Sherlock Holmes. Through John Smith  a fifty-year-old man confined to his room by an attack of gout  Conan Doyle sets down his thoughts and opinions on a range of subjectsincluding literature  science  religion  war  and educationwith no detectable insecurity or diffidence. His writing is full of bravado.  Though unfinished  The Narrative of John Smith stands as a fascinating record of the early work of a man on his way to being one of the best-known authors in the world. This book will be welcomed with enthusiasm by the numerous Conan Doyle devotees.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44966233669685,"sku":"ByrdShop_0712358412","price":226.82,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780712358415.jpg?v=1770558099","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/the-narrative-of-john-smith","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}