One more step, Mr. Hands, and Ill blow your brains out! Dead men dont bite, you know. Originally conceived as a story for boys, Stevensons novel is narrated by the teenage Jim Hawkins, who outwits a gang of murderous pirates led by that unforgettable avatar of immorality, Long John Silver. Admired by Mark Twain, Rudyard Kipling, and (reluctantly) Henry James, the sto One more step, Mr. Hands, and Ill blow your brains out! Dead men dont bite, you know. Originally conceived as a story for boys, Stevensons novel is narrated by the teenage Jim Hawkins, who outwits a gang of murderous pirates led by that unforgettable avatar of immorality, Long John Silver. Admired by Mark Twain, Rudyard Kipling, and (reluctantly) Henry James, the story has the dreamlike quality of a fairy tale. It has worked its way into the collective imagination of more than five generations of readers, young and old alike, gaining the power of myth. Although thoroughly British in its setting and characters, Treasure Island , as John Seelye shows, has an American dimension, drawing on the authors experiences living in California, and owes no small debt to Washington Irvings ghost stories and James Fenimore Coopers tales of adventures. This edition also includes Stevensons own essay about the composition of Treasure Island , written just before his death.