Rating: 
Summary: A "Horror" story?
Review:
Maybe at Robert Louis Stevenson's time, this was a horrific, evil story that gave people nightmares, but if you are look for a good horror story, look elsewhere.
Mr. Utterson is a lawyer who has a client and friend named Dr. Jekyl. Through a string of events involving a murder, a trampled child and Utterson's encounter with an 'evil' man named Hyde, Mr. Utterson becomes involved very much in his client and friend, Dr. Jekyl's, life. In the end you find out that Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde (the 'evil' man who turns out to be the murderer) are really one person. Mr. Hyde is part of Dr. Jekyl and Dr. Jekyl has only to drink a concoction of chemicals to become Hyde, in shape and mind, until the drink is drunk again to reverse the change again. Jekyl comes to despise Hyde and he knows that the only way to be rid of Hyde is to kill himself. Jekyl kills himself in the end and both Hyde and Jekyl are no more.
The way this book is written in somewhat confusing and bland at times. Slightly interesting, but I don't see how this book is a classic.
~Atalanta
Rating: 
Summary: Alex is the man
Review: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. hyde is a story that is told in weird scenario. This is a book that is told in a collection of letters. the letters compile to make a great scary story for people of all ages. The fact that this story is told the way it is gives it a real life feeling. When I was reading it I felt like it was a real case that happened in the streets of London. The letters that are made make it seem like that the case happened because it gives the tail of many people from the story. Even though the story is well known around Europe and the US the ending is still classic. The fact that the story is ended in a letter is quite original on Stevenson's part. It probably would have been more of a thriller if I had known the ending. The ending is probably the most well known in literature history and that kind of stinks. This book will actually make you touch a little on you evil side.
By: Alex Cruce
Rating:
Summary: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Review
Review: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Review Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is a thought provoking, entertaining novel by Robert Louis Stevenson. His intricate plot, themes, and use of symbolism make the novel fascinating to read. The concept is extremely mature and well developed. Also, Stevenson's unique point of view makes the novel even more interesting. The themes of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde are important in the novel. The basic and rather obvious main theme is the duality between good and evil. The duality is manifested in two different ways: the respectable Dr. Jekyll and the evil Mr. Hyde. Dr. Jekyll is a hypocritical doctor who has an evil deep in side of him that he desperately tries to get rid of throughout the novel. He transforms into Mr. Hyde hoping to reduce his aggressions and obsession with his evilness. This, however, proves to be fatal.
Stevenson's unique point of view reinforces the mystery of the novel. The main point of view is of Mr.Utterson. He is a quiet, respectable lawyer who is extremely observant to his surroundings. Through his point of view, we see things just as they appear to him, making the novel interesting to read. Towards the end of the novel, we are introduced to two different narrators, Mr. Lanyon and Dr. Jekyll. Mr. Lanyon, the doctor, makes the novel clear and describes, in more detail, the process that transformed Dr. Jekyll into Mr. Hyde. The last chapter, narrated by Dr. Jekyll brings the novel together. Dr. Jekyll plainly describes how the soul is made of two separate distinctions: the good and the evil. Dr. Jekyll's experiments with good and evil turn out completely failed.
Rating: 
Summary: An Enjoyable Classic
Review: Let me first echo the sentiments expressed by others and comment on what a beautiful edition the Univ of Nebraska Press has produced. The margins are indeed wide and the type very readable. This edition is easily held, the illustrations nicely complement the text and the binding is quite durable. The introduction by Joyce Carol Oates is helpful albeit pedantic. Also, those who've read the Univ of Calif Press edition of Frankenstein will notice some overlap between this introduction and the one that Ms. Oates wrote for that particular edition. Nonetheless, the introduction is valuable. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is one of those stories, like Frankenstein and Dracula, that seemingly everyone has heard of and believes they understand("mythopoetic " in the language of Joyce Carol Oates). Much like the aforementioned works, the actual details of the story may come as a surprise to those who assume they know the story based solely on the popular understanding. For that reason alone I think the book is worth reading. Dr. Jekyll is a respected if somewhat reclusive London doctor who has, through the course of years of experimentation, managed to create a solution which brings to the fore his evil alter-ego. Unlike many gothic literary villains, Hyde is not imbued with superhuman strength or exceptional gifts of any kind. In fact he is of a smaller and less imposing stature than most men. What he does possess however is a complete lack of compunction with regards to others. Hyde for example ruthlessly runs down a small child who gets in his way. As others have pointed out, this book is about, at least in part, moral restraint. Mr. Hyde is a part of Dr. Jekyll. This part was heretofore kept in check by the mores inculcated by society through child rearing practices, education, laws, et al. An elixir that eradicates moral restraint rips at the fabric of society and reverses in one fell swoop what it has taken hundreds of years to create.
As is the case with Frankenstein, Dr. Jekyll creates something that he can't control and which eventually destroys its creator. Although not created by a potion, I think we see many sections in this and other societies that are are marked by anomie. The inhumanity that the fictional Hyde displays can, not surprisingly, be seen in the non-fictional world on a daily basis. As such, there is a realism to the story which is missing from many horror stories past and present. The fact that such a short and captivating work exists in an attractively packaged edition makes this one classic that will be a joy to read for all.
Rating:
Summary: Good Story, Fast Read
Review: Quite short story, but one of the best Ive read of RLS. Last book he wrote before he died I think....
Great story, great fast read..
Please check it you for yourself. Youll be happy that you did !!
Rating:
Summary: Victorian sight of Good and Evil struggle.
Review: Robert Louis Stevenson (1850 - 1894) was a remarkable author from the Victorian Era. He has left us at least two masterpieces: "The Treasure Island" (1883) and "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" (1886) and some other good novels such as "The Black Arrow" (1888).
It is amazing how writers and poets are able, thru intuition, to anticipate events or discoveries. When this book was first published, Sigmund Freud was studying with Charcot and not so many years later will produce his theoretic corpus of the human psyche. At some points the present story touches Freud's conceptualizations.
Dr. Jekyll suspect evil burdens every human soul, being an obstacle in its way to goodness. So he investigates and produces a drug that "liberates" the evil spirit and doing so he intend to be relived of it.
But Evil starts to grow each time more powerful and Mr. Hyde end cornering Dr. Jekyll into impotence and fear.
This story has captivated the public's imagination for more than a hundred years. Movies, comics and theater pieces had evolved from it. His tortured dual character is now a well known icon as Stoker's Dracula or Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.
Even if you know more or less the story and its ending, reading this very short book is a powerful adventure.
A Classic you shouldn't let pass by unheeded!
Reviewed by Max Yofre.
Rating:
Summary: Stevenson's psychological nightmare realized
Review: Robert Louis Stevenson's "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" is arguably the single most famous metaphor that Western literature has bestowed upon the public conscience, and certainly the most ubiquitous metaphor for duality of personality. But what of the artistic quality of the novella itself? The outer plot -- involving the detection of Henry Jekyll's double identity by his friend and lawyer Gabriel Utterson -- is the least interesting facet of the story; Stevenson's concept, inspired by a nightmare, and the vivid language he uses to convey it, are what impress the most upon the reader. The respected London scientist Henry Jekyll seems normal enough, but he is fascinated by what he considers to be two distinct sides to his (or, he believes, anybody's) personality, which can be described crudely as good and evil. He furthermore believes these sides are physically separable, just as water can be separated into its constituent elements, hydrogen and oxygen, by electrolysis; and so he invents a potion that essentially splits his personality so that only one side will manifest itself while the other becomes latent. In this way, Jekyll reasons, the "good" side may be an agent of good works without being burdened by the disgrace of an inherent evil, and the "evil" side is free to do his damage without the pangs of remorse he would inherit from the conscience of his good twin. In Freudian terms, Jekyll is the ego, Hyde is the id, but unfortunately -- and this is the point that drives the story -- Jekyll has no superego to tell him that the potion is an irresponsibly bad idea in the first place. In society Jekyll retains his high esteem, but his mutation, the sinister, deformed Edward Hyde, whom he names as an heir as a further disguise of his own identity, is cursed to live in ostracism for his hideous appearance, cruel behavior, and disregard for the law. The fact that Hyde is physically smaller than Jekyll could be symbolic of his moral deficiency or merely reflect the notion that he is only a "part" of Jekyll; but the difference in size is convenient as a plot device because it prevents others from suspecting that Hyde and Jekyll are really the same person. One should not approach "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" as if it were just a primitive example of generic horror. Stevenson excels as a prose writer, suffusing his story with the kind of descriptive nuances that successfully evoke Victorian London at its darkest and most ominous contrasted with the civilized society of gentlemen and otherwise benevolent scientists. I was aware that Stevenson was an essayist, but I was unprepared to find that "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" is really an illustrative essay at its base, dressed in monstrous fashion.
Rating: 
Summary: Hyde
Review: Robert Louis Stevenson's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was a disappointing, unstimulating, and over-graphic story. At times it was too pictorial and at others they will change things up and no one will say or revealed a thing to save some rich man's secrete background from coming to the light. The entire plot of the book is revealed in the first twenty pages. Everyone has heard parts of the book. People know Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde are the same man. They know he drinks a potion and changes. They know one is good and the other is evil. Everything is known before you even read the book. I half way expected Hyde to be huge and beast-like similarly to the way he is seen in comic books and even movies. That part was disappointing. The fact that the book jumps from one perspective to the next and the story is simply retold from another point of view. It is simply not a good book. There is a lesson in this. If your wife tells you a book is bad and you burn the original chances are the second is going to stink just as bad.
Rating:
Summary: Hyde
Review: Robert Louis Stevenson's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was a disappointing, unstimulating, and over-graphic story. At times it was too pictorial and at others they will change things up and no one will say or revealed a thing to save some rich man's secrete background from coming to the light. The entire plot of the book is revealed in the first twenty pages. Everyone has heard parts of the book. People know Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde are the same man. They know he drinks a potion and changes. They know one is good and the other is evil. Everything is known before you even read the book. I half way expected Hyde to be huge and beast-like similarly to the way he is seen in comic books and even movies. That part was disappointing. The fact that the book jumps from one perspective to the next and the story is simply retold from another point of view. It is simply not a good book. There is a lesson in this. If your wife tells you a book is bad and you burn the original chances are the second is going to stink just as bad.
Rating:
Summary: Psychology in Jekyll and Hyde
Review: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde challenges the strict social classes of the Victorian era and explores the duality of human nature. Reputation is a prevalent theme in this horror story from a different generation. Readers are taken on an adventure through the eyes of Mr. Utterson as he tries to discover the connection between the prestigious Dr. Jekyll and the curious Mr. Hyde.
Because of the language during the Victorian period, readers of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde tend to be of a more mature audience. The language used in the book is not hard to understand for the more advanced readers. The book appeals to many audiences because those who have not read it know the story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Movies and other books have been based on this novella by Robert Louis Stevenson. Though people of different ages may want to read the book, it is best for more advanced readers. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is appealing because of its many different objectives. For those who wish to learn of a different era, namely the Victorian period, this book is perfect. It shows the way reputation was exalted during that time. For those interested in horror stories, this book will appeal to them. If you are interested in the duality of human nature and other psychological type things, this book will interest you. For someone who just wants a good read this book is also a good choice. This book is a classic because of its appeal to many types of people. Even young children know the story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Before reading the book, I knew the basic meaning behind it. I would recommend this book to anyone that has at least a high school reading level. For those younger, the books language may become a bit confusing and cause the overall story to be lost. The meanings behind the book may be hard to catch at the first glance. For those who wish to look deeper at the meaning of Stevenson's words, this book is perfect. Even if the reader doesn't want to read between the lines, the basic horror story in this book is entertaining enough. I would give this book a rating of 4 stars. It is interesting and informative. At times the book because a little boring because of the in depth information and the stiff language. There is little action in the book and the ending is a bit different than other books, but over all it is an interesting story and a good read.
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