If anybody asked me--describe St. Louis--I can now just hand them a copy of this book. Beginning with Pere Jacques Marquette and concluding with Gerald Early, 300 plus years of St. Louis are illustrated through various memoirs, stories, poems, essays and plays as told by St. Louisans (both well known and lesser known).

Not just mere public relations ad campaign for the region, the collection also confronts issues head-on that have plagued the region for quite some time. However many selections also remind us how many great aspects there are in this region to offer its citizens.

The introductions and bios for the individual authors also provide great context and insight to the pieces, as well as including many interesting tibits of information that even the most knowledgable St. Louisian wouldn't know. Kudos to Lee Ann Sandweiss and everyone at the Missouri Historical Society for assembling an anthology very worthy of anyone who "seeks St. Louis."

Some of the best writers of his time--Henry James, for one--looked forward eagerly to getting letters from Stevenson, as he traveled around the world, looking for a place that might improve his health. (From boyhood on, he suffered from severe lung problems.) Dip into this book at random, and you'll see why. Stevenson put himself into his letters unreservedly--there's a confidential tone of voice throughout them that's warmly appealing--and he is acutely perceptive on a wide range of subjects, including himself. Ernest Mehew has judiciously chosen the best of the letters, and arranged them to create a de facto autobiography. This is a book that every literate person--and particularly anyone interested in nineteenth century literature in English--should have close at hand.

Journalist Harper Barnes' biography of David Rowland Francis,
American politician and diplomat whose career ranged from St. Louis in
America's heartland to the depths of Russia during the Bolshevik
revolution (1917-19), is full of surprises. As the youngest mayor of
St. Louis and governor of Missouri at the turn of the 20th century, he
lead progressive Democrats and fathered the St. Louis World's Fair in
1903-04. Appointed ambassador to Russia by President Woodrow Wilson, he
endured terrible hardships during its revolutionary period, aided by his
articulate and loyal friend and valet, African-American Philip Jordan.
Much of the Russian story reads like an exciting spy novel. Wonderfully
researched and well written, it is a compelling account that enriches
both United States' and international history. It captivates the reader
and offers heretofore unknown insights into not only a remarkable
American but United States foreign policy at a pivotal time in world
history.

The original version of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is much different than you would expect, if you haven't read it before. It plays out as a mystery of sorts. A lawyer friend of Jekyll tries to find out what the relationship is between the respectable Dr Jekyll and the lowlife Mr Hyde. It is not revealed until near the end of the story that they are in fact the same man. Of course, nowadays everyone is aware of that before they have even read this story. Naturally, a lot of the suspense of the story is lost due to this. Still, this story became a classic for a reason and is well worth a read. And it's short too, for you kids looking for a short book to read for a book report. There are two other suspense stories by Stevenson included here, too. These two are not classics, but they are also enjoyable.

"The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" is assured a place in the history of horror fiction because it the literary classic that represents the archetype of the werewolf (the human with the monster hiding inside). Along with Mary Wollstonecraft's "Frankenstein" (the Thing Without a Name) and Bram Stoker's "Dracula" (the Vampire) Robert Louis Stevenson's novella is part of the gothic foundation of the modern horror story (there is really not a single ghost store of equal standing, although "The Turn of the Screw" by Henry James comes close). All have in common the fact that they promise to tell a story that might best be left untold, which, of course, is exactly the sort of story we want to hear.

Given that Stevenson was writing when the genre of horror fiction was not recognized as such, it is surprising that "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" is cast in the form of a mystery novel. Stevenson invites his readers to try and get ahead of the story, to put the clues together and come to the conclusion. Today it is nearly impossible to pick up this story and not know the "secret," but if you think back to the late 19th-century when this story was written you can get a sense for how Stevenson used the biases and limitations of his readers to his advantage in keeping them from what we might consider to be an obvious conclusion.

More importantly, Stevenson is writing several decades before the writings of Sigmund Freud revolutionized the whole idea of human psychology. Yet we can certainly find evidence of the conscious and subconscious mind of which Freud would write. Stevenson reinforces this metaphor with the block of buildings that divides this particular part of London, with one side representing the civilized world of a respected physician and the other side the squalor of the world inhabited by an inhuman creature who gives in to his every earthly desire. The novella also speaks to the topic of evolution, with Hyde being described as "ape-like," reinforcing the idea that our most human attributes remove us ever further from the category of mere animal.

Of the three classic horror novels, "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" is the most accessible. Not only because of its shorter length, but also because its evil is more realistic, even in terms of our imagination. We might be unable to reanimate the dead or to become the walking dead, but we can certainly relate to the idea of unleashing the beast buried with us. Even if we could not, we can recognize the "werewolf" in the real world in the form of serial killers who try to show a civilized face to us in public. This is not to say that the novella is simplistic, for Stevenson offers a sophisticated narrative. If this is one of those literary you have never read because you already know the story, then you should take out an evening to sit down and finally get around to reading it.

This is a beautifully presented and edited volume. The novel is a classic, and it is here edited by one of the greatest American scholars in her field, Susan Wolfson. Not to be missed.

"The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" is assured a place in the history of horror fiction because it the literary classic that represents the archetype of the werewolf (the human with the hiding inside). Along with Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley's "Frankenstein" (the Thing Without a Name) and Bram Stoker's "Dracula" (the Vampire) Robert Louis Stevenson's novella is part of the gothic foundation of the modern horror story. All have in common the fact that they promise to tell a story that might best be left untold, which, of course, is exactly the sort of story we want to hear.

Given that Stevenson was writing when the genre of horror fiction was not recognized as such, it is surprising that "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" is cast in the form of a mystery novel. Stevenson invites his readers to try and get ahead of the story, to put the clues together and come to the conclusion. Today it is nearly impossible to pick up this story and not know the "secret," but if you think back to the late 19th-century when this story was written you can get a sense for how Stevenson used the biases and limitations of his readers to his advantage in keeping them from what we might consider to be an obvious conclusion.

More importantly, Stevenson is writing several decades before the writings of Sigmund Freud revolutionized the whole idea of human psychology. Yet we can certainly find evidence of the conscious and subconscious mind of which Freud would write. Stevenson reinforces this metaphor with the block of buildings that divides this particular part of London, with one side representing the civilized world of a respected physician and the other side the squalor of the world inhabited by an inhuman creature who gives in to his every earthly desire. The novella also speaks to the topic of evolution, with Hyde being described as "ape-like," reinforcing the idea that our most human attributes remove us ever further from the category of mere animal.

Of the three classic horror novels, "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" is the most accessible. Not only because of its shorter length, but also because its evil is more realistic, even in terms of our imagination. We might be unable to reanimate the dead or to become the walking dead, but we can certainly relate to the idea of unleashing the beast buried with us. Even if we could not, we can recognize the "werewolf" in the real world in the form of serial killers who try to show a civilized face to us in public. This is not to say that the novella is simplistic, for Stevenson offers a sophisticated narrative. If this is one of those literary you have never read because you already know the story, then you should take out an evening to sit down and finally get around to reading it.

¿Quien no ha pensado alguna vez cuanto le gustaría meterse en la piel de alguien más osado, o menos tímido o incluso más guapo? Algunas personas desean cambiar su forma de comportarse y para ello utilizan los medios a su alcance, alcohol, prozac... pero esto conlleva un cierto peligro ¿no? Pues que le pregunten al doctor Jeckyll, él inventó una fórmula que le transformaba en Hyde, al principio todo iba bien, pero su adicción a la sustancia le complicó las cosas, además, su lado oscuro, Mr. Hyde no era todo lo encantador que él hubiera deseado. Pienseló antes de intentar cambiar su personalidad y sobre todo, lea este libro. Muy interesante y entretenido.

That was the best book I've ever read! I'm an avid reader and that was the best! It gave an insight into the mind of a teenage boy growing up in the poverty in the 50's and 60's. It includes everything from drugs, rock and roll, and sex. It's something everyone can relate too, especially those of us who are flower children and hippies but born in the wrong decade. "If you remeber the 60's you weren't there"

What a compelling read..... I was afraid to put the book down for fear I would miss something! I think this novel really gets you thinking about what could REALLY be going on in the world. GREAT work!