The Brother on My Back is the first book in the In Loco Parentis series, and is a re-imagining of Sherlock Holmes for kids. In this version, set in the 1990s, Sherlock is a 13-year-old at a British boarding school. The story is narrated by the headmaster, Thomas Carpitcher, fulfilling the Watson role. Sherlock keeps the same basic character traits as his classic adult counterpart-he's observant, confident, and direct-but he's still learning from his mistakes and developing his skills. This first case has Sherlock solving a mystery for a classmate's family, and he does it in typical Sherlock fashion. This story also provides a glimpse into Sherlock's family, which is never seen in other Holmes tales, and a very interesting glimpse it is. Hopefully we'll get to see more of the Holmes family in the future, as it would be interesting to see where Sherlock comes from and how his family relationships helped to shape him. I think this series is a good way to introduce Sherlock Holmes to kids. It is an entertaining read, language is not difficult, and it isn't very long. I look forward to reading the next one!

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is an adorable and well-written novelette, and I think that fans of Sherlock Holmes around the world can appreciate this book and find it entertaining. However, it is best read along side of the original Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, and standing alone it is not as entertaining.
It is loosely based off of the Doyle story "The Musgrave Ritual", and features 13-year-old Sherlock and his condescending older brother Mycroft in the year 1990. The story is told in first-person from the perspective of the principal at the Holmes brothers' school.
I think that in many ways the author has captured bits and pieces of the original stories, such as the occasional Latin phrase and the way young Sherlock deduces things, but in some other ways I don't think she succeeded. As a reader, several things became obvious to me before they became obvious to Sherlock, and because he is supposed to be a genius I don't think he appeared intelligent enough in the story. I thought that the poem was rather clear in its directions to the treasure, but it took Sherlock too long to figure it out, in my opinion. ( )