The Bottle Imp - Softcover

Stevenson, Robert Louis

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1508499969 ISBN 13: 9781508499961

Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2015

Synopsis

"The Bottle Imp" is an 1891 short story by the Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson usually found in the short story collection "Island Nights' Entertainments". It was first published in the "New York Herald" (February–March 1891) and "Black and White" London (March–April 1891). In it, the protagonist buys a bottle with an imp inside that grants wishes. However, the bottle is cursed; if the holder dies bearing it, his or her soul is forfeit to hell.

About this title

About the Author:

Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson (13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, poet, essayist, and travel writer. His most famous works are "Treasure Island", "Kidnapped", and "Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde". A literary celebrity during his lifetime, Stevenson now ranks among the 26 most translated authors in the world. His works have been admired by many other writers, including Jorge Luis Borges, Bertolt Brecht, Marcel Proust, Arthur Conan Doyle, Henry James, Cesare Pavese, Ernest Hemingway, Rudyard Kipling, Jack London, Vladimir Nabokov, J. M. Barrie, and G. K. Chesterton, who said of him that he "seemed to pick the right word up on the point of his pen, like a man playing spillikins."

From School Library Journal:

Grade 6-8?Published first in Samoan in 1891, this story is suffused with the magic of Polynesian culture. Keawe, a native Hawaiian, comes upon the wealthy but downcast owner of a magic bottle. His fortune comes from a demon that lives in the bottle and gives its owner anything he desires. There is a catch, of course. The owner must sell it for less than he paid or "burn in hell forever." Being young and adventurous, Keawe buys it for $50, and his wishes are granted. In addition, he sells the bottle to a friend who is fully aware of the stipulations it carries. Keawe then meets and falls in love with the beautiful Kokua, but now his circumstances take a dreadful turn for he discovers a spot of leprosy on his flesh. To reverse this condition, he seeks out the bottle imp, and he finally traces it to a man who has purchased it for two cents. The horror of Keawe's dilemma is plain; if he buys the bottle for a penny he will be unable to sell it again, and he will loose his soul. Yet his love for Kokua is so great that he makes the purchase. This transaction sets the stage for events that follow. Told with all the elegance of Stevenson's style, the story is enriched by Mair's opaque watercolors that recall the work of Paul Gauguin. Her primitive style and brilliant colors add to the tension of the story and evoke the lush environs of the setting. Older readers who enjoy horror stories but are ready for something challenging will surely find this spooky tale satisfying.?Barbara Kiefer, Teachers College, Columbia University, NY
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 1508499969
• ISBN 13: 9781508499961
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 33