The vaults of the Paris Opéra hide a hideous secret, and it’s revealed with theatrical flourish in this lavish new Folio edition.
Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
Illustrated by Mervyn Peake
Introduced by John Hampden
Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic horror Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde reveals the darker side of human nature and this striking Folio Society edition is illustrated by fellow master of the gothic Mervyn Peake.
CA$60.00
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‘Good and evil are so close as to be chained together in the soul.’
Fascinated by the mixture of good and evil in his own character, Dr Jekyll works day and night in his laboratory to create a drug which will separate the two. The result is Mr Hyde, a being as repulsive in appearance as he is in character. Soon there comes a day when Jekyll can no longer curb Hyde’s loathsome excesses, and events spiral out of his control. Robert Louis Stevenson’s hugely influential gothic novel is a must-have for classic fiction connoisseurs, and this is the ultimate collector’s edition. Introduced by John Hampden and illustrated by celebrated writer and artist Mervyn Peake, this sumptuous volume also features a gold-blocked cloth binding with a design by Peake.
Bound in 2 cloths blocked in gold
Set in Imprint
152 pages
Frontispiece and 11 duotone illustrations
Plain slipcase
8¾˝ x 5½˝
Mervyn Peake, best known for his own gothic masterpiece Gormenghast, was also an extraordinarily talented illustrator and he provided 12 exquisite drawings for this edition. The split black-and-cream binding, with the shambling figure of Mr Hyde at its centre, is a striking representation of the dual nature of the main character. In his fond introduction, John Hampden creates a picture of the author, which is almost as vivid as the characters that haunt the novel, describing Robert Louis Stevenson as ’an emaciated figure in slovenly clothes, incessantly smoking cigarettes, his brown eyes shining in a haggard white face, his restless movements full of grace’.
Stevenson took the idea for Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde from an extraordinarily vivid dream and worked at it like a man possessed for three days without stopping. The end result brought him instant fame; sermons were preached about it, the public rushed to buy a copy. Ever since, this hypnotic doppelgänger story has captured the imagination of readers with its exploration of the dark side of humanity.
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