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Dracula
THE definitive modern...
THE definitive modern vampire story. Modern, of course, meaning post-Victorian. Anyone read the Bram Stoker novel?
submitted by TNÖ, age 15, Deep Space
(May 10, 2009 - 9:52 pm)
(May 10, 2009 - 9:52 pm)
No. *sighs* Technically I haven't read very many of these books at all, but I post because it's non-Warriors.
Though I was going to read Dracula, but was afraid it might be a bit... scary? *is fraidy cat* I mean, duh yes, vampires, probably a bit frightening, but it is creepy to the point of, extreme graphic violence, or just regular horror story scary?
(May 11, 2009 - 5:03 pm)
This is the Victorian era we're talking about. Even stories such as The String of Pearls (Sweeney Todd, that is) had almost zero blood.
Dracula... hm... It's not particularly scary for you, the reader, but for the characters it is quite terrifying. I mean, it's the sort of story that (once you get to the part with Lucy) keeps you up well into the night reading; but once you finish you're not gonna be having any nightmares.
The title character gets truly very little actual screentime because the story is told via journals, letters, and newspaper clippings. The goriest the story really gets is Renfield's habit of, um, catching flies/spiders/bird and randomly deciding to kill and eat them. But that's not even described except in retrospect and hypothesizing from the Doctor's point of view. *shrug*
I'd recommend it. It's not scary, and it's a fascinating read. Plus, while Dracula is every bit as abusive and controlling towards Lucy, he's SUPPOSED to be abusive and controlling. Plus they weren't in any kind of a relationship except when Lucy was asleep and sleepwalking, but still...
(May 11, 2009 - 10:08 pm)
Okay, I'll check it out from the library.
And you can cheer here, because I never read the GIC. :) Though I did read another simplified :( version a few years ago... but I don't remember that much... :/
(May 12, 2009 - 6:47 pm)
front...
(May 11, 2009 - 5:03 pm)
I read the "junior version" in 2nd or 3rd grade, at a friend's house. It gave me such terrible nightmares that my mom pretty much banned me forever. . .but that was 4 years ago. I want to read it, since I definitely enjoyed even the washed down version, and want to add more to my "other vampires besides Twilight" arguments with my friends. So, yup.
(May 12, 2009 - 7:09 pm)
I read the unabridged original in the sixth grade and again, twice, recently. It's not really nightmare fuel (dunno about the junior versions, I find Disneyfications kinda scary sometimes (Disneyfication doesn't necessarily mean Disney, mind, just simplification))...
'Course I'm not really one to judge; I like gore (within reason). It's kinda fun to write and if done properly fun to watch (case in point: Tim Burton's Sweeney Todd).
(May 12, 2009 - 9:59 pm)
I am inclined to agree about the scariness of the simplified versions.
(May 13, 2009 - 3:18 pm)
I'm now about halfway through it, a little while after Lucy dies. It's not nearly as frightening as I thought it would be- but it is really, really good. Once I got used to the weird type it was set in, that is...
I did find it a little strange that after Mina spends about a hundred pages calling Lucy "dearest" and worrying about her and being all sisterly towards her, she gets the telegram from Dr. VH and is sort of just like, "Lucy's dead. Wealth of sorrow in few words. Poor Lucy. Poor Mrs. W. Poor Arthur. God help us." *moves on* She doesn't seem very emotional, though... she sort of underreacted to Jonathan's whole experience regarding Dracula when she read his journal.
John Seward and Dr. VH are the two best characters, I think.
Thanks to everyone for the awesome reccommendation, I'm really enjoying it.
I'm going to go read some more now, and I'm considering taking a flashlight to bed tonight...
(June 10, 2009 - 7:17 pm)