Holmes Minor

Thank you so much! I love your idea about the shelf of 'Watson books,' that's delightful <3 Yes, it's an old bit of headcanon for me that Watson buys books to commemorate their cases. The bit in the ACD canon that inspired the idea was that passage in "Red-Headed League" where Holmes quotes the correspondence between Gustave Flaubert and George Sand. I wondered what prompted him to read and even memorize some of their letters. Sand is so reminiscent of Irene Adler that I liked the thought that Watson bought the volume for Holmes as a memento of the Bohemian affair (and perhaps as a way of quietly showing him that he understood more about Holmes's feelings than Holmes might expect him to). Flaubert and Sand's relationship, from what little I know of it, reminded me of Holmes's attitude toward Irene -- full of intellectual and artistic respect rather than romance.

Anyhow, it's fun to imagine what kinds of books Holmes and Watson might have taken interest in :) Thanks very much for your lovely note.