Book Synopsis**SPOILER ALERT - if you don't know what this book is about do not read further!**
Everyone has a dark side. Dr Jekyll, a respected scientist and well-regarded doctor, has discovered the ultimate drug. A chemical that can turn him into someone (or something) else. Suddenly, he can unleash his deepest depravities and cruelties in the guise of the sinister and evil Mr Hyde. Transforming himself at will, he roams the streets of fog-bound Victorian London as his monstrous alter-ego, looking for prey. It seems Dr Jekyll is master of his fate. It seems he is in complete control. But soon he will discover that his double life comes at a hideous price and he becomes the victim of his success...
Ups
I could have sworn I had read this book, as I already know so much about its main concept. However during a recent browse through my library I noticed that I don't actually have a copy, so rushed to rectify the situation. The book was much shorter than I thought it would be, at 88 pages it's more of a novella. When first published in the 1800s, it was a truly shocking tale, especially because the readers at the time would not have known the fact that Jekyll and Hyde were one man with a dual personality until the last pages, and would have been trying to figure out the mystery throughout the book only to be faced with the shocking revelation at the conclusion. Despite the fact that it is almost impossible for a modern reader to innocently experience the story as it was meant to (as we all know what happens at the end), it is still a bone-chilling piece of writing. I loved the Edgar Allan Poe-esque atmosphere that oozes from the story, even the foggy, murky streets of London is an apt setting for the sinister tale that unfolds.
This isn't just a gothic horror story - it is one of the first of its kind. Also its not just about the old chestnut of good versus evil - its insights into human psychology were decades ahead of its time. Stevenson wrote this book several decades before Sigmund Freud revolutionized human psychology yet a lot of the tenets that Freud would write about are here in this book. Fascinating.
It is said there is a sentence in every book that captures the essence of the book, and I always look out for this. In this book there was one line that really struck me: "My devil had been long caged, so he came out roaring". Notice the use of 'He' and not 'It' - showing that Dr Jekyll considered Mr Hyde a person just as real as himself, and not a chemically induced monstrous beast.
Downs
I can think of very few downs. Whilst I was reading this book I desperately wanted to find out exactly what Mr Hyde did during his evening excursions to satisfy his cruel nature, and wished the book had been longer to answer all these unanswered questions. I was going to put this as a 'Down'. However, now that I have finished the book, I actually quite like the way Stevenson was 'economical' with his writing, as half the story is in what was left unsaid. The exact nature of the depravities and cruelties enjoyed and inflicted by Mr Hyde is never spelt out, but left to the imagination of the reader. Therefore whatever the reader imagines these to be, that probably reflects the deepest and darkest thoughts of the reader's own Mr Hyde... Worrying thought!!
Rating
Language & Style - 9 / 10
Memorability - 10 / 10
Re-readability - 8 / 10
Pageturner factor - 8 / 10
Overall - 9 / 10
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