Books and Authors - Sunday Stamps II

Young Folks, a magazine for children, serialised a story between 1881 and 1882. The story was credited to 'Captain George North.'

On 14 November 1883 Cassell & Co published it as a book in the author's name.

Another Young Folks' story appeared in May/July 1886, followed by a second book.

Ill health in his later years caused the author to travel in the South Pacific and spend time in the Gilbert Islands, Tahiti and New Zealand. He eventually settled in the Samoan Islands where he built a family property which became his home for the remainder of his life.

On 29 April 1969 Samoa commemorated the author and his book on the 75th anniversary of his death.

I remember reading both of those books when I was boy.

I know the story of Stevenson's third book published in 1886. You all must know it as well.

Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

It has also appeared as 'The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde' and as just 'Jekyll and Hyde.'

The fourth book of Stevenson on the Samoan stamps was an unfinished novel, set in the Napoleonic Wars, cut short by his sudden death in 1894 from a cerebral haemorrhage.

Weir of Hermiston - (1896 Chatto & Windus)

Robert Louis Stevenson's tombstone rests atop Mount Vaea in Samoa.

Weir of Hermiston can be read as a virtual book here. Hermiston is a suburb of Edinburgh. In 1907 the city of Hermiston, Oregon was named after the book.

For other authors and their works check out Sunday-Stamps-II-110. where there is another Scottish connection.

Xanadu to Xerox

A-Z Challenge – ‘X’

“In Xanadu did Kubla Khan

A stately pleasure-dome decree:”

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

If Xanadu was the place to be, and in Vietnam, I wonder whether you had to pay for the pleasure with a xu, one-hundredth of a dong. If a dong sounds musical to you could play the note by hammering on a xylophone. I’m sure however that my efforts would not qualify me as a contestant on the X Factor show.

I understand that birds and bugs may be xylophagous, i.e., they bore into wood. I hope that they would not choose to bore into the three masts of a xebec, a Mediterranean sailing ship on the way to Treasure Island.

On treasure maps X always marks the spot. If pouring over an old map hurts your eyes then perhaps you need a fluorescent lamp containing xenon. Bones recovered from the treasure site may even need to be X-rayed.

To relax at Xmas time you might decide to watch episodes of the X Files. If an alien can be a foreigner it’s no good being xenophobic. It’s definite that as a blogger you can’t be with followers from all over the world.

I’ll bet that you are all glad that X is the 28^th letter of the alphabet; think of it, if the letter for today was xi it would only be the 14^th.

There is to be a referendum in the UK on May 5^th on possible changes to the voting system. The AV (alternative vote) system would require you to record your preferences for candidates in an election as 1, 2, 3 … and would do away with the current first past the post system. As an advocate of X all I can say is that A and V have had their chance.

If you believe that this post is worth saving you could always print it out and use a Xerox machine to copy it to your friends.

Finally, love and xxx to you all.