Hey guys! Maymunah here! ?
Today I thought I’d write about a book more suited towards teens. We had been studying at school and as a homework over the holidays we were asked to reread it. It’s a long term classic and by all accounts, it’s a fantastic book. The book I’m going to talk about today is The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.
I knew you’d have heard of it! This book is among there with the most film adaptations and it’s been the base for numerous character transformations and the phrase “a Jekyll and Hyde personality” to describe someone who has really violent mood swings.
If you haven’t read the novella by Robert Louis Stevenson (he wrote Treasure Island and formed the classic stereotype for pirates today) it follows the story of Mr Utterson, a lawyer for Dr Jekyll who is entrusted to the Doctor’s will. It mentions the infamous Mr Hyde who Utterson is determined to find the truth about and unravel the whole mystery.
It’s a classic for a reason. The story is incredibly original for back in the Victorian era and explores a concept that isn’t very much talked about, even today. The story looks at good and evil and tries to assert whether or not the two really are separate, and the question of someone being truly “good” or truly “bad”.
The reason I’d recommend this to teenagers is because of the complex concepts in the story as well as the very difficult language (a dictionary next to you is necessary). Also, there was a few few grim scenes where a child was trampled on and someone was murdered which probably wouldn’t be ideal for younger children.
However, the story is really recommended for a teenager to go back to the beginning and see what the true story of Jekyll and Hyde’s is.
Have you read this story? What did you think? Leave a comment below!
About the Author
Maymunah Azad is a 15 year old author living in Derbyshire. She enjoys reading, writing and being a general geek!
You can find more about her at www.daimbycity.com
