Robert Louis Stevenson

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Author: Glenda NorquayBiography: literaryPublished on 1 February 2026 by REAKTION BOOKS in the United Kingdom as part of 'the Critical Lives' series.Paperback | 200 pages, 34 illus trations129 x 200 x 14 | 308g This concise biography offers a fresh portrait of Robert Louis Stevenson: frail Edinburgh child turned globe-trotting author of Treasure Island, Kidnapped and Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. It charts his remarkable literary range – from fiction and poetry to essays and letters – crafted across three continents, often in poor health. Stevenson’s adventurous life and memorable characters captured both popular imagination and critical praise. Drawing on new scholarship, the book explores his role as a literary innovator and cultural commentator, revealing how his work engaged with the anxieties of a rapidly changing world. At once celebrity, critic and colonial observer, Stevenson emerges as a truly modern writer, whose influence remains potent today. This is essential reading for lovers of literature, history and global storytelling. Show more