"Honest Jim" was an informal nickname for James D. Watson (1928-) and was also the original, working title for his controversial 1968 book The Double Helix. The title reflected Watson's notoriously candid and often blunt writing style, which some colleagues and critics found to be a mixture of scientific reporting and gossipy personal observations about the scientific process and the personalities involved. Maurice Wilkens (1916-2004) was highly critical about the publication and attempted to block its release. His detailed criticisms of the book are outlined in this letter.