Arthur Ransome's long-lost study of Robert Louis Stevenson

This is the first publication of a book by Arthur Ransome, originally commissioned in 1910. The manuscript, nearly complete, was sequestered by Ransome's wife in 1914, and he never saw it again. It came to light only by chance, long after his death. Arthur Ransome here gives an exceptionally personal and perceptive account of the strengths and weaknesses of Stevenson as man and writer. Writing when most books on Stevenson were biographical or merely adulatory, he intended his to be the first 'critical study'. Here Ransome wrestles to identify techniques that later underpin his Swallows and Amazons. Moreover, this is the only manuscript first draft of a work by Ransome to survive, and as such provides a unique insight into his working methods. The appendices include all other extant material relating to Stevenson by Ransome, from his very first story (written at the age of eight, and hitherto published only privately) to working notes and articles in literary periodicals. The editor's introduction gives an account of the history of the manuscript's development, disappearance, and rediscovery, and adds a new chapter to the tumultuous story of Ransome's first marriage, early career, and escape to Russia.