Reviewed by Michaela Pallante aka "Mickey" for TeensReadToo.com

Everyone loves a good mystery, and there are no better mysteries than those involving Sherlock Holmes.

In his newest case, Holmes is hired to investigate a murder at a local circus and calls upon his new assistants - The Baker Street Irregulars - for help.

The Baker Street Irregulars are a group of young orphan boys who live very near Mr. Holmes. Led by the two oldest boys, Ozzie and Wiggins, they improve their own detective skills by helping Mr. Holmes whenever and wherever he needs them.

Set in Victorian London, this story is action-packed and fast-paced. Ozzie and Wiggins, along with the other boys, add excitement to the mystery at hand. The characters speak in Victorian slang, which really helps the reader get into the setting, but it makes me worry that some readers may get confused. However, there is a glossary provided in the back of the book. Also included are pieces about Victorian slang, the Science of Deduction, and Victorian hats and transportation, which were very fun and interesting to read.

THE FALL OF THE AMAZING ZALINDAS really keeps you guessing and is perfect for younger male readers.

Disfruté enormemente leer este libro en la edición económica en inglés y me pareció una excelente forma de introducir a jóvenes lectores en el "mundo extendido" de las narraciones sobre Sherlock Holmes –el original súper héroe de la cultura popular-. Como introducción me parece ideal, ya que el libro se centra en los chiquillos callejeros mencionados en un par de las historias originales del Dr. Doyle, “los irregulares de Baker Street”, proveyéndoles de historias de vida y de personalidades suficientemente atractivas para ganar la simpatía del lector. Estos pequeños son en realidad los protagonistas que descifran el misterio, con Holmes como figura secundaria –el admirable “Maestro”-, algo distante y frío como corresponde al auténtico carácter de Holmes pero suficientemente humano para que los jóvenes lectores avisten la fascinación que sigue ejerciendo este personaje.
Para compartir este libro con mis sobrinos, adquirí la edición española y quedé gratamente sorprendida. La traducción es excelente; la encuadernación y sobre todo, las ilustraciones son fantásticas. Si algún “pero” habría que poner es que las ilustraciones son tan lindas que ¡hasta el Holmes parece guapo!
En inglés o en español, muy recomendable.

This is a children's book and I guess my inner child has already grown up too much for me to enjoy it. As a kid, I might've gobbled it up with a spoon. But now? Two things really bothered me: a) didn't like any of the Irregulars and b) Watson was portrayed as an unlikable fool which is a pet peeve of mine.

Regarding a: The only kid that was fleshed out was Ozzie. But he talked like a scholar and was more knowledgeable than Watson and in some instances even Holmes. A kid of 12 years? He was basically a miniature Sherlock Holmes. And then there was Pilar, the gypsy Mary-Sue, who knew how to do everything, from driving a coach to lip-reading, I kid you not! And she was, what? 10? 11? If you have to shoe-horn a girl in, don't make it so obvious, writer.

Regarding b: What is it with the Sherlock Holmes tie-in writers and their bashing of Watson? Every one of the authors who bring in their own creations or focus on a different character, not Holmes and Watson, does it at the expense of Watson. I've read quite a few Sherlock Holmes tie-ins so I know what I'm talking about. Here, Watson was nearly invisible and when he was there, he was dumb as a brick and cranky to boot. Sherlock Holmes even confided in the children instead of Watson, for Christ's sake!

To sum it up: Dear writer, there are other ways to make your characters shine, you don't have to dumb down the original author's creations. If you don't plan on keeping the existing characters true to themselves, write original stories.

adoro la idea. pero siento que muchos de los personajes del libro no le hacen justicia a los originales. Obviamente, lo más probable es que me los devore de uno en uno.

I really enjoyed the theme of this book. I won't say the actual plot of the mystery is very interesting, but reading about these great street boys who love to help Holmes solve his cases was very captivating. The characters are very well laid out and they really do draw your attention to them. Well written for middle level readers, with great illustrations, I think this book will interest most. A nice read.

Excuse me, but the only writer who's allowed to disrespect Dr. John Watson is Dr. John Watson.

The illustrations, however, were lovely.

This book is a graphic novel and is a marvellous book for key stage 1 children onwards. This book is full of sinister plots and every page of the book is full of excitement and suspense. With Sherlock Holmes missing, the Baker Street Irregulars move into 221B Baker Street, in order to save London from criminal minds. When the Lord Mayors daughter goes missing and Eliza Mayhew grandfather gets kidnapped, the irregulars commence their first case – and quickly ascertain that they are up against a menacing villain. The book contains some great onomatopoeia, which may assist children with their reading skills. Onomatopoeia , can also be linked with phonic works ( again assisting children with their literacy/reading skills). The cover of the book is very attention grabbing and just by looking at it makes you really want to read it.
The book contained a bag of sad and happy emotions. The characters in this book are pleasant with names like Wiggins, Chen , Tiny, Pockets and Ash, will definitely put a smile on children faces. The writing of the book is in independent bubbles and is energetic with loads of cartoonish yet intricate images. The artwork of the book is quite detailed and condenses the story nicely. The images in the book are based on vibrant colours but the outline of the paper is black.
In my opinion, this book is very exciting, full of thrills and you walk away feeling that you are a real detective and can solve anything.

This is a really cool book for fans of Sherlock Holmes. The Baker Street Irregulars are an interesting group of boys and offer great insight into how rough it was to be living on the street without parents in London during that time. Luckily for the boys they have each other and have formed a supportive and clever group. The boy's resourcefulness and street smarts has made them a great asset to Sherlock which they prove many times over during this investigation at the circus. I recommend this book to young readers who are already a fan of Sherlock Holmes as well as those who are curious about the great crime solver.

a good story with a couple of my favorite things to read about - circuses and sherlock holmes! the illustrations were really well done, too.

I really thought that I'd enjoy this book, but I ended up really dragging my feet through the entire thing. I have no idea why. Usually, I love mysteries and Sherlock Holmes, but this book just did not do it for me.

I think the main problem was that I didn't feel enough suspense driving the mystery forward. These acrobatic people have died...Holmes is going to solve the mystery....why should we care? I didn't feel any connection to what was happening, and there was not enough going on to make me move forward.

There was very little of the story that actually involved Holmes. He popped in and out a couple of times, but the Baker Street Irregulars are mostly seen as the main heroes. When Holmes does come in, it is only to inform us readers as to what's really going on in the mystery (as the Irregulars, despite being good at investigation, appear to not be able to conclude their own hypotheses, except for Ozzie, who is like a junior Holmes. Perhaps Holmes will turn out to be the boy's long-lost father.)

The boys themselves were okay, but I didn't feel any super strong connections to them. Again, although they don't seem to be doing much (after all, they're just typical 10-12 y/o boys compared to Sherlock Holmes...), they make up the major part of the story. I also found it doubtful that Dr. Watson would treat them the way he did.


Swearing: None

Sexual content: None

Violence: None

Religious/spiritual/magical content: The boys visit the fortune teller's tent at the circus and all have their fortunes told.

Love the new twist in the Sherlock canon. It's a little bit of a stretch to me, but I appreciate that this is a version of Sherlock Holmes that's appropriate for younger readers.

Tracy Macks and Michael Citrin’s Sherlock Holmes and The Baker Street Irregulars: The fall of the Amazing Zalindas is one of the best books I have read in while. Unlike the more popular Dystopian novels, this book takes you into the past to an unfamiliar environment where you are to witness it through the eyes of what at first seems to be a simple minded boy on the streets with a few hidden talents that gradually through time, evolves into a quite logical young man that yields such skills of deduction as the great Sherlock Holmes himself. Overtime, Ozzie Manning proves himself through great acts of courage, street smarts, and his skills of deduction, as an important asset in the investigation of the mysterious death of the Amazing Zalindas. As you acclimate to the bustling city of Victorian London, you become completely aware of the character’s surroundings and become more interested in the Irregular’s adventure to stop the uprising of a highly unpredictable and dangerous villain. The authors made it their number one priority to make the reader to feel completely amherst into the book. It is a nice change from the original Sherlock Holmes storyline. I highly recommend this book and I hope more people pick up this book and become interested with the series.