A true masterwork of storytelling, Dracula has transcended generation, language, and culture to become one of the most popular novels ever written. It is a quintessential tale of suspense and horror, boasting one of the most terrifying characters ever born in literature: Count Dracula, a tragic, night-dwelling specter who feeds upon the blood of the living, and whose diabolical passions prey upon the innocent, the helpless, and the beautiful. But Dracula also stands as a bleak allegorical saga of an eternally cursed being whose nocturnal atrocities reflect the dark underside of the supremely moralistic age in which it was originally written -- and the corrupt desires that continue to plague the modern human condition.
Pocket Books Enriched Classics present the great works of world literature enhanced for the contemporary reader. This edition of Dracula was prepared by Joseph Valente, Professor of English at the University of Illinois and the author of Dracula's Crypt: Bram Stoker, Irishness, and the Question of Blood, who provides insight into the racial connotations of this enduring masterpiece.
What Others Say
NEW DRAMATIC PRESENTATION OF 'DRACULA'.
Dracula (Enriched Classics Series)
It is SPLENDID. No book since Mary Shelly's FRANKENSTEIN, or indeed any other has come near the book, in originality, or terror. My dad says," I think it is the very best story of DIABLERIC which I have read for many years."
It is indeed wonderful, how with so much exciting interest over so long, there is never an anti-climax in the book. Despite such unbiased positive responses, while DRACULA sold well enough in the United Kingdom, it was at best considered a 'potboiler'. It came from STOKER'S research into the history and superstitions of Eastern Europe.
Hungarian Professor, Arminius Vanbery, helped Stoker a lot by telling him the history of the Romanian Prince, VLAD TEPES, better known ... Read More
Dracula... Spooky Social Commentary
I read Dracula to get into the "Halloween spirit" if you will. My father read this to me when I was quite young (I had an odd childhood) and I had only vague recollections of the novel which were somewhat tainted by the movie starring Bela Lugosi. Bram Stoker's Dracula is different... mustached, for one, with hair growing on his palms.
Stoker tells the story through his character's journals and letters. The beginning, told through the voice of imprisoned Jonathan Harker, is by far the most exciting part of the novel. We are later introduced to other characters: the flighty yet virtuous Lucy and her many suitors, Jonathan Harker's fiance, the emboldened and wise Mina, and of course Van Helsing, the original vampire slayer. Dracula's ... Read More
Excellent book
A little lengthy for me, but it really is neccessary to create an amazing setting and character desrciption. Stoker truly creates a very rustic and creepy setting. The only problem I had with the book is the ending. It's not surprise what the ending is, but in comparison to Lucy's 'deal', the count's just doesn't live up to your own hype as you read.
Excellent book though! Now I only wish someone would make a GOOD movie from the book. Not some lame 'play' on film.
Questioning "the other"
While this is definitely a Should Read novel-- after all, the character of Dracula is firmly entrenched in our culture-- I came away from it mildly disappointed. While the epistolary quality is a fun way to get inside the minds of the various characters, I never became comfortable with its inherent misogyny. The women are either pillars of virtue or shameless vixens, and the men's responses to female sexuality are either to possess the woman, kill her, or protect her. This is clearly a response to the time in which it was written, when women were beginning to show their discontent with being merely decorations.
Stoker also shows his (or perhaps his culture's) fear of the other through the constant assertions that London is the center ... Read More
A True Classic
Bram Stoker's influential late-Victorian novel remains a dominant presence in the realm of horror and vampire literature. While some modern readers may have difficulty with the late 19th-century writing style, the novel itself is a rewarding experience for anyone willing to consider the work, and the use of language should not be held against its brilliance.
Though not the first word in vampire literature and mythology, Stoker's novel is, in a way, the last word - and one very much so worth reading.
