by A. J. Low
Our Solar System—The is an off-site Science Centre exhibition that replicates the Solar System, using 10 sundial sculptures that have been placed at various parks and gardens around Singapore. The coolest thing about this exhibition is that the distances between the sculptures represent the relative distances between the actual Sun and planets! For more information, visit this link: http://www.science.edu.sg/exhibitions/Pages/OurSolarSystem.aspx
Port Moresby—The capital and the largest city of Papua New Guinea. A popular destination for business and adventure travellers.
Sook Ching—A word that means “purge through cleansing” in Mandarin. It refers to a Japanese military operation in 1942 during their occupation of Singapore that eliminated suspected threats within the Chinese community.
Wile E. Coyote—A character from a cartoon series called Looney Tunes. Wile E. Coyote is constantly trying to capture The Road Runner using elaborate contraptions and plans which always backfire.
ABOUT THE CHARACTERS
SAMUEL TAN CHER LOCK a.k.a. SHERLOCK SAM
A 10-year-old detective who tends to bite off more than he can chew, Sherlock Sam loves superheroes and comics. His heroes are Sherlock Holmes, Batman, Agent Coulson and his dad. Exceptionally curious and intelligent, Sherlock cannot resist a perplexing mystery, not even when it can get him in trouble.
WATSON
Less than two years old, Watson behaves more like a grumpy old man though he has remarkable similarities to a sulky toddler. He is often reluctantly drawn into Sherlock’s misadventures. Watson secretly wants to join S.H.I.E.L.D’s Science division and create an army of like-minded robots.
WENDY
Wendy, Sherlock’s 11-year-old-sister, can be a tomboy. Her arch-nemeses are mosquitoes and snooty, spoilt classmates. She is a talented artist and her favourite colour is green. Her Chinese is terrible.
JIMMY
Sherlock’s classmate, Jimmy, seems to have the super power to fall down without injuring himself. His enthusiasm for everything is infectious and no one can stay mad at him for long (that might be his other super power).
NAZHAR
Nazhar is a bookish boy who loves reading about history and is the big brother of the group. He is trying to learn more about the outdoors from Eliza but, unfortunately, Nazhar has a horrible sense of direction.
ELIZA
Eliza is an only child. Her parents are often away on business, leaving her to her own devices. Though sometimes sarcastic and mean, Eliza secretly enjoys going on adventures with Sherlock Sam and his friends. She really loves My Little Pony and neat hair.
DAD
A brilliant engineer, Sherlock’s dad is constantly working on top-secret experiments. He cannot concentrate unless he is chewing on Red Vines, a twisty liquorice candy. He has never stopped reading superhero comics because he thinks that everyone needs heroes, no matter how old they are.
MOM
Sherlock’s mom is half-Peranakan and a genius in the kitchen. She loves reading books by Jane Austen and enjoys watching superhero movies more than she lets on—especially those featuring Black Widow.
OFFICER SIVA
Officer Siva is an experienced and insightful police officer with the Singapore Police Force, but he cannot work without his morning kopi. A trusted ally of Sherlock Sam, Officer Siva is studying Spanish because he’s addicted to telenovelas. He hopes they’ll be the new Korean dramas in Singapore.
JAMES MOK
Born and raised in London, James has only recently moved to Singapore with his parents. James’s intellect rivals Sherlock Sam’s genius, but he cannot be distracted by delicious food. He enjoys cream with his scones and Earl Grey tea, hot.
MORAN
Not much is known about Moran other than the fact that he is very polite and obeys orders without question. Unlike Watson’s robotic voice, Moran sounds almost human. He also has an amazing moustache.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
A.J. Low is a husband-and-wife writing team!
Adan Jimenez was born in the San Joaquin Valley in California to Mexican immigrant parents. He became an immigrant himself when he moved to Singapore after living in New York for almost a decade. He has worked for comic book stores, book stores, gaming stores and even a hoagie sandwich shop once. He loves comics, LEGOs, books, games (analog and video), Doctor Who and sandwiches.
Felicia Low-Jimenez has been a geeky bookseller for most of her adult life. She has bought books, sold books, marketed books and now she is trying her hand at writing books. She loves to nap and eat chocolate. She spends most of her free time reading, and, when she can afford it, she travels, usually to look for beautiful bookstores around the world.
Sherlock Sam and the Missing Heirloom in Katong won the International Schools Libraries Network’s Red Dot Award 2013-2014 in the Younger Readers’ Category. Sherlock Sam and the Ghostly Moans in Fort Canning took third place in the Popular Readers’ Choice Awards 2013 in the English Children’s Books category.
You can find them at sherlocksam.wordpress.com, facebook.com/SherlockSam Series and [email protected]
ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR
Andrew Tan (also known as Drewscape) is a full-time freelance illustrator and an Eisner-nominated comic artist. He illustrates for print ads, magazines and also enjoys storyboarding and illustrating for picture book projects. During his free time, he’s always creating his own comics for the fun of it. In his home studio you’ll find an overflow of art tools of all kinds as he loves experimenting with them. He already has too many fountain pens and tells himself that he will stop buying more. Andrew published his first graphic novel, Monsters, Miracles & Mayonnaise, in 2012.
ALSO IN THE SERIES
Sherlock Sam and the Missing Heirloom in Katong
Sherlock Sam and the Ghostly Moans in Fort Canning
Sherlock Sam and the Sinister Letters in Bras Basah
Sherlock Sam and the Alien Encounter on Pulau Ubin
Sherlock Sam and the Vanished Robot in Penang
Sherlock Sam and the Cloaked Classmate in MacRitchie
Sherlock Sam and the Stolen Script in Balestier
TROUBLE IN TOKYO!
Look out for the next exciting adventure of Sherlock Sam and Watson in the ninth book of the series.
Inspector Lestrade and Interpol have a mystery that only the Supper Club can unravel. Sherlock Sam, Watson and their friends have to travel to Tokyo, Japan, and eat their way through a baffling series of clues before they can solve the tasty crime! Will Sherlock Sam prevail? Or will everything get lost in translation, leaving our intrepid detectives cold and hungry?