book 43 – Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Every now and then you come across a book that you’ve never read but that is the foundation of a myriad of cultural references that you recognize and completely understand. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is one of those books that few people have read (like me!), but the plot of which shows up everywhere from bugs bunny (Hyde and Hare, 1955) to Star Trek (The Enemy Within, 1966).
As a short book, or more of a novella, it is, by necessity, tight. Robert Louis Stevenson invokes vivid imagery and interesting character development with few wasted words. To be able to write short stories is a skill I admire for this reason.
It was also fun just to have the actual Jekyll and Hyde story revealed! Similar to Dracula or Frankenstein, it’s a story we think we know because of its influence in pop culture, but in reality, we don’t.
When I first saw Casablanca, I was astounded by the number of quotes from the movie that have become common-place expressions in modern-day language. It was a complete surprise the impact that the movie has had on our current culture and language. This is not the same as Jekyll and Hyde, because we know the impact in advance and are looking to discover the original source, but the reading of the book reminded me of that first time watching of Casablanca.
Rating: Buy it. I think this is one you should have in your collection. (You should own a copy of Casablanca, too, by the way.)
