Although I read this book a couple of years ago, it still stands out in my mind as exceptional and outstanding. It is comprehensive in its coverage of Steiner's ideas and work, and for a person approaching the ideas of anthroposophy for the first time, it is the perfect introduction to the man behind it all. I found the book to be much clearer on Steiner than Steiner's own writings. I was nineteen when I read the book so I will recommend that especially young people interested in Steiner get this book. When I finished reading it I was in awe of how much Rudolf Steiner accomplished in his life and the sheer number of fields of knowledge (philosophy, science, medicine, education, art, agriculture, religion) he contributed to. The book is very well written and inspired me to look more deeply into Steiner's philosophy and his work.

I'm glad I didn't miss this book. So many literary works seem to contain some vengeance or spite, but this is the first work of criticism that I've come across which studies the constant of revenge across a number of authors.

The betrayals described in the book are extreme, and include a homosexual husband writing of his bride's "frigidity" while the two are still on their honeymoon. The book is not for the young or squeamish reader, as Desalvo describes in detail some bizarrely depraved acts committed by adults upon the chidren in their care. There were a few letters from an incestuous grandmother that I found quite disturbing, and would prefer to have skipped.

This is a type of book I never thought I would encounter - an absolutely captivating work of literary criticism. I couldn't put it down.