Across the Plains: With Other Memories and Essays [Paperback]

Robert Louis Stevenson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 2005 | ISBN-10: 1596053127 | ISBN-13: 978-1596053120

I always imagine St. Andrews to be an ineffectual seat of learning, and the sound of the east wind and the bursting surf to linger in its drowsy classrooms and confound the utterance of the professor... -from "Random Memories" With observations both trenchant and sentimental from the keen eye of one of the 19th century's most beloved writers, this charming volume, first published in 1892, is a delightful potpourri of Robert Louis Stevenson's essays. Within: . a recounting of an overland trip from New York to San Francisco, with thoughts on the people and landscape of America . a valentine to a French artists' colony... and a withering eye for the artists themselves ("'Snoozing' is a part of the artistic education") . commentary on the cantankerous and windswept nature of "The Coast of Fife" and the value of "The Education of an Engineer." These musings of an inveterate wandering and keen spectator of life serve as a glimpse into the mind and memories of an author's imagination, and serve as a vital psychological backdrop for the tales of adventure, romance, and horror related in Stevenson's fiction. Scottish writer and poet ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON (1850-1894) was born in Edinburgh to a prosperous family of engineers, but gave up the family profession first for law and then for literature. Among his prodigious output as a writer are: Treasure Island (1883), The Black Arrow (1884), A Child's Garden of Verses (1885), Kidnapped (1886), and The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1886).

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Scottish writer and poet ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON (1850–1894) was born in Edinburgh to a prosperous family of engineers, but gave up the family profession first for law and then for literature. Among his prodigious output as a writer are: Treasure Island (1883), The Black Arrow (1884), A Child's Garden of Verses (1885), Kidnapped (1886), and The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1886).

Product Details

• Paperback: 228 pages
• Publisher: Cosimo Classics (November 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1596053127
• ISBN-13: 978-1596053120
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 4.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #755,582 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Remarkable, September 17, 2006

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Andrew S. Rogers (Stamford, Connecticut) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Across the Plains: With Other Memories and Essays (Paperback)

What a collection of little gems. Robert Louis Stevenson is justly remembered for novels like Treasure Island and The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, but he was also a master of the essay. These dozen short works are a delight. Whether taking us on a transcontinental railroad journey, introducing us to the artists' colony of Fontainebleau ("The art of words and not a desire to publish new discoveries, the love of form and not a novel reading of historical events, mark the vocation of the writer and the painter."), or meditating on man's place in the universe, Stevenson combines lyrical, descriptive prose with a keen eye for detail. He can rhapsodize about nature, and then skewer man's cruelty or hypocrisy. It makes for writing you'll want to return to again and again.