I wished this book would have had a longer chapter analyzing the natures of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, and the impact this short book has had on culture and society. The lists of movies and theatre plays are good, but there are some faults. (Wrong production year of Fredric March movie, storylines of some of the movies are not entirely correct.) A few times, I wondered whether the authors really had seen the movie or not. When you publish a book like this, you must look up your facts closely! The Stevenson biography was interesting and exactly the right length, though the Deacon Brodie chapter could have been considerably shorter. All in all, a good lexicon for Jekyll & Hyde-fans.

Saw Dr. McNally on TV discussing society's fascination with the "evil within". Great book, well-paced yet in-depth enough to satisfy the thoughtful reader. The chapters tracing the common theme of the two sides of humanity through the movies and media were particularly eye-opening for me. Also, the exploration of Robert Louis Stevenson's evolution of the story was fascinating. Great writer- will have to pick up the Dracula books now!!

This book is a great companion piece to the author's earlier studies of the historical Dracula. For anyone who is a student of literature or of Stevenson in particlar, this is a great resource. I had the good fortune to take one of Prof. McNally's classes, and thus be exposed to his work. They provide a well-researched historical context and examination of the origins of these Victorian classics.

If you haven't read any of McNally/Florescu's previous works on Dracula, do so now and pick this one up while you are at it. For anyone who is fan of Dracula or Jeckyll/Hyde, the two Dracula books and the Stevenson study are "must haves". Stop reading my review, and go buy the damn books!

This book is excellent for any type of baseball fan. It has wonderful photos with excellent information. It is truly a worth-wild buy for baseball fans, no matter what the age!

I was excited to read this book for soley one purpose... to read Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Once I was done that, I moved on to good and bad stories.

DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE:

This story was actually very good and was the reason I read it. I was satisfied with this story, though the person who needs constant action to keep their attention shouldn't read this as much of it is Utterson investigating.

THE BODY SNATCHER:

This book started out shaky and was at first hard to follow, but once you get some pages behind you, you'll understand it well enough. The ending (I won't give it away) is also VERY strange and it is hard to understand.

MARKHEIM:

Ah! Markheim! One of the better written of these tales. It is easy to understand and is cleverly written, and does not drag on and on like some other tales in this book. It is a VERY GOOD story.

OLALLA:

This was one of those books that you couldn't wait to find out what happens and then it suddenly just lets you down. It leads up to so much and then doesn't deliver!

THE EBB TIDE:

The longest of the tales in this book...which makes you wonder...why wasn't the book named: The Ebb Tide and Other Stories? (Because Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde was best known of course!) The first few chapters in this tale make you wonder whether this story will turn out to be good, but then as the story progresses you realise that the tale is getting better and better (this is probably due to fact that Stevenson worked on this with another author and the more chapters written became more and more Stevenson, the first few chapters being the other author, and the end being all Stevenson.)

So your question now is: Do I buy? Don't get me wrong, some stories in this book are good, but others dragged on. If you are interested in the following:

-Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde
-Markheim
-Ebb Tide (Last few chapters are best)

...then by all means get this book! If you are just getting it because you need something to read, sleep on it, then make your desicion! Hope I helped!

Excellent book! Easy to read and index of terms in the back make for easy reference for Old English terms. Other stories are worth a look as well. I never realized the author had written so many macabre stories. It was fun and interesting.

This book was well written and it was realistic. In the sense that this fiction book with it several stories could have happened in real life. I expecially liked the story of 'Strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde'. It showed that everyone could have a dark side waiting to come out if given the chance. I give it 5 stars out of 5 for originality and for the joy of having read it.

I was surprisingly disappointed with this novel, partly because so much is left in the air. The relationship between Archie and his father (a finely disguised mix of RLS' father and Lord Braxfield- whose portrait actually appears on the cover), is perhaps one of the most interesting features. Christina or Kirstie (the younger one) appears part way through and although she is obviously going to be a major character in the novel disappears (because the MS cuts off) at just the least appropriate time. I suggest with the notes that you read a chapter and then read the notes for the next one, otherwise it can be a wee bittie piecemeal reading the thing. Don't be put off by the Lowland Scots dialogue if you aren't Scottish, Miller has listed the more important words at the back and most appear several times. What is there is well written (although pretty wordy by today's standards), but it's not good to be left in the lurch like that.

This was Stevenson's last novel and is unfinished, though it is known how it was going to finish. The main feature of the plot is the relationship between Lord Hermiston, a judge renowned for his stringency, and his more liberal (but still fairly well-behaved) son. The plot is of course a lot more complex than that, and the father is absent for most of even what Stevenson wrote before his death.

It is a very Scottish novel, with large portions of it taking place in the Scottish countryside, with clan relations, etc. and with most of the dialogue in Scots.

Some of the characterisation is excellent, and if it had been finished with Stevenson's usual ability along the suggested storyline, it would have been a very moving novel indeed.

A simple concept: Pooh's friends are looking for him and your young reader must open the flaps to see if Pooh is in each place. Along the way, you meet up with all Pooh's other friends until finally you find him. Kids love the flaps and the repetition of the "where's Pooh" theme.

Adlai Stevenson, remembered chiefly as the Democratic presidential candidate who lost to Dwight David Eisenhower in 1952 and 1956, lead a fascinating and eventful life. It is the sort of life that might inspire a great biography, throwing a lot of light upon his nation and his times.

Unfortunately this book, thoroughly researched and competently written though it seems, is not that book. McKeever slides too quickly over crucial points, such as the Little Rock, Arkansas school desegregation crisis and Stevenson's equivocations.

Read this book if you are interested in its subject, but supplement this "liberally" (if I may intrude a political pun) with the work of other scholars.

Adlai Stevenson (1900-1965), has long been regarded as one of the most beloved liberal politicians of modern times. To the liberal wing of the Democratic Party in the 1950's and 1960's, Stevenson was a heroic figure, an eloquent and brilliant statesman who had the courage to criticize demagogues such as Joe McCarthy and Richard Nixon when few other Democrats were willing to do so. In his two failed presidential campaigns against the popular Republican President, Dwight Eisenhower, in 1952 and 1956 Stevenson became known internationally for his moving oratory and quick wit (Example - when Eisenhower criticized Stevenson in 1952 for not being serious enough, Stevenson, noting Eisenhower's refusal to take on right-wing zealots like Joe McCarthy, jabbed back: "The General is worried about my funnybone, but I'm worried about his backbone"). In this moving and eloquent biography - written in a style that Stevenson himself probably would have admired, Porter McKeever, a close friend of Stevenson and a strong admirer - has penned an excellent look at his hero's life and times. Stevenson came from a distinguished political family in Illinois - his grandfather and namesake was the U.S. Vice-President under Grover Cleveland - and so he came naturally to politics as a career. Curiously, although he is known as a great intellectual, he did poorly in school and college (he went to Princeton) and even flunked out of law school, mainly because he found the law boring (however, he later did get a law degree and opened his own law firm). In the 1930's and 1940's he worked at various government jobs, winning the respect of his superiors and even catching the eye of President Franklin Roosevelt himself. In 1948 he wanted to run for the US Senate in Illinois, but instead the infamous Democratic "machine" in Chicago, led then by Jacob Arvey, convinced him to run for Governor. He won the election easily and immediately became the leading candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1952. In part this was due to his friendships with many famous journalists and newspaper columnists, who relentlessly pushed his name forward as a candidate. Yet Stevenson himself was remarkably ambivalent about running for President, and when President Truman tried to convince him to run in early 1952 he refused, thereby making a lifelong enemy of him. Unlike most major politicians, Stevenson wasn't afraid to be modest and admit to his inner "doubts" that he had the skills to be President - which only served to further endear him to the liberal wing of the Democratic Party. Over his objections, his name was put forward by various prominent Democrats and he was nominated. Although he lost to Eisenhower in the fall of 1952 (and, again, in 1956) he did inspire many younger liberals to enter and participate in politics - many of these people would later serve in the Kennedy and Johnson Administrations. Despite his sophistication and highly idealistic views of what America should be, Stevenson did have his problems - his childhood was traumatized by his parent's constant bickering and fighting, and by the fact that as a young boy he accidentally shot and killed a girl while playing with what he thought was an unloaded rifle. His marriage, to Ellen Borden, was extremely rocky - she later developed mental problems and became resentful and angry at her husband's success and popularity - and they were divorced in the late 1940's. Stevenson did have a number of affairs with other women - this biography includes a number of romantic and eloquent love letters to his lady friends - yet he never remarried. Stevenson's last years were rather sad - in 1960 several of his friends tried, against his express wishes, to get the Democrats to nominate him for President for a third time - but he was trounced by the Kennedy brothers, who ever after resented what they felt was his "indecisiveness" and "weakness". Although Stevenson desperately wanted to be Secretary of State, JFK deliberately bypassed him and instead offered him a lesser job as the US Ambassador to the United Nations. The Kennedy brothers routinely left Stevenson "out of the loop" in their decision-making, and even sometimes enjoyed making his life miserable "just to see how much old Adlai will take". As it turned out, he would take quite a lot, and he served as our UN Ambassador until his sudden death from a heart attack in 1965. Although this biography is a tribute to a man the author greatly admired, it is surprisingly objective and McKeever is not afraid to point out his hero's weaknesses. To this day many liberals still look to Stevenson as a model of statesmanship and idealistic politics - and that makes this well-written biography well worth reading.

As a teacher in the middle school ranks, Chris Stevenson knows what is like to be a young adolescent. The information in this book is solid and offers a n excellent overview of the social, physical, and emotional development of the 10 to 15 year-old. This text stays student-centered, and never does it try to tell you the right or wrong way to teach children. Parents of a young adolescent would find this a good resource in understanding the development of their child. Although the book is a little lengthy, I would recommend it to anyone looking to become a middle school teacher or a parent of a middle school child.

A little mouse goes on a boat trip to France with his parents. He is definitely not excited about going. His trip goes from bad to worse, with only frequent bouts of seasickness and some annoying experiences to break his constant boredom. Lonely, he cannot find any friend among the snotty, sneering kids aboard. The stowaway brings excitement and friendship to his life, helping him to overcome his fears. My seven year old son loves this story. I think he can somehow identify with the mouse. I find the book very typical of James Stevenson's style. He seems to understand perfectly our children's struggles, and very effectively communicates unpredictable and unconventional solutions.

Never mind the film versions; the original unabridged Swiss Family Robinson is an exciting epic with a lot in it for the whole family.

Our third grade teacher read to us from this book every day and I could hardly wait for the next installment. Finally I got my own copy for a birthday gift, sat on the couch and read it cover to cover in one go. I still have this book, decades later.

From the opening, thrilling tempest scene to the very end and the "rescue", this book has plenty of action as well as creative solutions to problems. There is a lot of material for discussion, how the family solved problems, how they handled disagreements, adversity, disappointment, building of character.

This book definitely teaches values along with the adventure and the values are linked in such a way as to be an integral part of the story.

And Swiss Family Robinson is never boring. There is always an exciting new beast to be discovered, a new plant to use for food or clothing, a new machine or tool to be built, a new part of the island to explore. This is a wonderful book to read out loud to kids until they are old enough to enjoy reading it themselves. If you are bored with re-runs on TV, turn off the box and spend a half-hour or hour every evening reading this aloud. Everyone will have a great time, and kids who are read to, become readers themselves.

There's not many classic books that are more well known than "The Swiss Family Robinson." A Swiss family is stranded on an uninhabited island and there doesn't seem to be any rescues that are lingering around the corner for many years. Soon the family is taming tons of new pets, fighting off animals such as anacondas and lions, and learning how to basically survive off the land the best they can. The Robinson family must keep an eye out for danger while also starting a whole new way of life for themselves.

I thought "The Swiss Family Robinson" was a spectacular adventure/survival book. You can say that the book is pretty much a long diary that is kept by the father of the family of everything that happens to them on the island. The book I read did have many references to God unlike some of the abridged editions. The only thing I didn't like about "The Swiss Family Robinson" is that when the family starts collecting and taming many animals that they find on the island, it gets a little tough to keep up with all the animals' names, but that wasn't bad enough to take anything away from the book for me.

I recommend anybody who likes survival or adventure books, especially if you like reading the classics, to get "The Swiss Family Robinson." I would recommend getting an unabridged version of the book if you can so you won't miss a word.

But let's be clear right up front. My 5-star rating of this book applies only to the original unabridged version in Johann Wyss' own words. The modernized versions are watered down, time-wasters for word wusses.

When I was nine years old I spent months struggling through this book for the first time. The old style language made for rough going, but I persevered. In the end I was rewarded with more than a classic tale marvelously told; I discovered a love of books and earned self-respect for tackling a tough read.

If I was a teacher whose task it was to introduce students to classic literature, I would skip Dickens and use this book. Kids love adventure, animals, and action. Swiss Family Robinson has it all. It's really a thriller disguised as a literary classic. All book lovers should read this one at least once.

And please don't watch the Disney movie and claim you've "been there, did that" on this story. The movie is totally different and in no way compares.

This is a good, inexpensive book with basic information on how to set up a planted aquarium. I'd recommend this book in conjunction with Barry James' A Fishkeeper's Guide to Aquarium Plants. Although there are a few mistakes (photos of Riccia fluitan and Java moss have been switched), you can't beat the amount of info you get for the price.

If you are a non-scientific or beginner with aquatic plants, this is a terrific reference book for the price. You won't find anything this good for less than 20 bucks. It has excellent pictures so you can ID plants correctly. It has solid info on substrates, co2, and fertilizer. It is the most accurate cheap book on water conditions, ph, buffering, etc.

It also has crystal clear easy to understand explanations of complex things such as photosynthesis and respiration, biogenic decalcification, and iron use. It also has terrific clear info about how to recognize plant problems.

It clearly IDs the most popular species and these are outstanding pictures--much better than those most other and even more expensive books offer. And the writing and diagrams are absolutely fuss-free, clear and plain. A monkey could read this and grow a decent plant!

This will not be particularly useful to an experienced aquatic horticulturalist but it is hands-down the most accurate simple intro level book available.

If you are a botanist or water chemist, you'll be dissappointed, but for the average person trying to grow some decent plants in his or her tank, wow. It's fanatastic! And a great bargain. For 30-40 more you could get great books by Teepot and Walstaad, but this slim volume is essential for the beginner.

Please excuse me, I'm about to gush. If you are just going to buy one book, and you have [little] to spend, buy this one. (If you have unlimited funds, buy this one plus Aquarium Plants by Christel Kasselmann).

As the planted aquarium chairman at our aquarium club, I get a lot of questions. The answers to most of them are in this book. It is a great beginner reference, but be sure to go back and reread it after you've been in the hobby for six months, because you'll learn a lot more about pruning, aquascaping, trimming, etc.

Just buy it!