Robert Louis Stevenson

Robert Louis Stevenson in 1885. (Photo by Lloyd Osbourne, from Project Gutenberg.)

Robert Louis Stevenson was a 19th century Scottish writer and traveler who is well-known for his novel The Strange Case of Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (the plot was revealed to him in a dream), as well as other novels such as Treasure Island and Kidnapped. However, his bibliography is very extensive, as he also wrote poetry and several essays.

Stevenson was admired by many higher-ups in literature such as Jorge Luis Borges and GK Chesterton. Both of them were great fans of Stevenson's accessible, nigh-perfect prose. Henry James liked his works so much that he used Treasure Island when needing an example of a novel that perfectly did what it set out to do.

Though he wrote many books, his work was drastically cut short, as Stevenson died at 44 due to health problems in Upolu, one of the Samoan islands. The inscription on his tombstone became a well-known and still-sung Grief Song for many Samoans.

Works written by Robert Louis Stevenson include:

1. Treasure Island
2. The Strange Case of Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
3. Kidnapped
4. The Bottle Imp
5. New Arabian Nights
6. The Wrong Box
7. The Body Snatcher
8. Olalla
9. Weir Of Hermiston

Most of his works can be read at Project Gutenberg.