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Young Frankenstein: A Novel
Book by Gilbert Pearlman (Adapter), Gene Wilder, Mel Brooks
160 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published November 12, 1974
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
January 6, 2026
Young Frankenstein, written by Mel Brooks and Gene Wilder, starring the latter and directed by the former
9.4 out of 10
This formidable comedy is based on Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, the script has been nominated for an Academy Award and the film is included on The New York Times’ Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made list - https://www.listchallenges.com/new-yo... as one of the most amusing features you can watch…
Gene Wilder is fabulous as Doctor Frederick Frankenstein – he has a certain manner in pronouncing it, up to a point, and this causes one of the multiple scenes of mirth, when he meets with Igor aka equally outstanding Marty Feldman and the latter responds in kind…as in, all right, if you play games with the pronunciation of a name that we know so well around here…there we go, this is no longer Igor, but something like Yagor maybe…
He receives the testament of his famous grandfather, Victor von Frankenstein, from a box…but it was no easy thing, to get it from the cadaver that would not allow it to be extracted, even from the ‘dead hands ‘so to say – and the young neurosurgeon travels all the way to Transylvania – which is right where we live…well, nearby – and he would at one stage address a scientific gathering at the Academic Society of…Bucharest, where we are right now.
The humor is pervasive and throughout the trip we have moments when the announcements are intelligible, then the surgeon asks a boy about the ‘Transylvania Station’ as if there would be one railway station for a whole region, like say for the whole of Mississippi, and in the first place there is the same unintelligible gibberish, which is then replaced by ‘would like a shine for your shoes, sir’…the boy knew English all along.
At the ‘Transylvania Station’, Igor aka Marty Feldman is waiting, offers to take the bags, but when he sees that one if really heavy, he takes the light luggage and then invites the guest to the vehicle, which is a cart with a…Damsel inside, the florid, attractive Inga aka Teri Garr, who is supposed to and will be the assistant of the surgeon and will keep him company all the way to the sinister, farfetched and far away castle, where the scary Frau Blucher awaits- whenever her name is uttered, the horses jump and scream…indeed, Igor is naughty that he comes out the door, after all are inside, to say Blucher for the tenth time and see the animals agitated and scared…
While the new owner is accommodating, he hears a violin somewhere and decides to investigate with his assistant – how else – and physical comedy follows, as he is thrown by a secret door out and back into the room a few times, then he is caught and almost crushed in between, until they reach the secret library and then they would pursue the magic, supernatural operations that are destined to give life to a senseless being, following the recipe, the discoveries of the ancestor who has written everything in a book…
They select the freshly buried body of a giant, but the journey back to the ‘laboratory’ is not without agitation, for they slip and part of the cadaver are out, just as an agent of the ‘Transylvania polizei’ is walking about, saying he knows everyone, but Frederick Frankenstein is unfamiliar and they have to communicate with the good doctor pretending that one of the hands of the dead man is actually his, shaking it with the agent who remarks on how cold it is – dead cold we can say with insight – and then they put the fellow on the table and proceed to give him a brilliant brain, kept in one of the jars in the pantry presumably…
Only poor, helpless Igor slips and the good brain is lost and he has to replace it with what he would later call the organ of someone Abby Normal – alas, it was labeled ‘do not use under any circumstances, Abnormal brain’ – Igor being an interesting combination of someone very clever, shrewd, funny, but also portrayed as having something on the back – the doctor says upon their acquaintance that he is a surgeon and can do something about that thing on his back, but when he sees that the man does not acknowledge anything wrong – what thing on the back? – says never mind, only to ask later – but your thing was on the other side, as in the hump was leaning left and now it is to the right and in deference to sensitivity and perhaps politeness, he again retrains himself and stops in his tracks…
Meanwhile, the ‘natives are restless’ as in they have a reunion and show incipient nationalism – making us think of Trump’s rallies, the idiot that keeps calling the Covid 19 threat ‘the Chinese virus’ in his trademark distancing from anything that can be hi fault…when asked, he says he ‘is perfect’ they have done nothing wrong and takes no responsibility, even if he had acted as a cretin in this pandemic, which he denied as a hoax invented by democrats, which will drop to zero in days and miraculously disappear…only a few weeks ago that was his take on what is clearly as bad as it gets…
The ‘monster’ is created and he attacks when he sees fire, he is free to roam around and this is where we have again some hilarious scenes, such as the ones where he meets the ‘Blind Man’ aka legendary, Titan of cinema Gene Hackman, an isolated hermit who had prayed God for someone to visit and break his too long solitude and when the Creature arrives, the ascetic figure is overjoyed and puts out drink, only he breaks the can from which the visitor is supposed to toast, then he offers him one of the two cigars he had saved for this momentous celebration, but as he cannot see, he puts fire to the finger of the poor guest, who runs from this home in aggravation to meet with a child that he treats with kindness…
Doctor Frederick Frankenstein says to his team, Igor and Inga, that he would have to go into the cell where his Creation is kept and stay with him no matter what, come Hell or High Water, for he has to solve this drama and he needs to consider self-sacrifice for science and more to the same ‘motivational’ but oh so jocular purpose and then adds with gravitas that they must keep the door close, once he gets in with the so dangerous character, no matter what he says, if he begs, shouts, cries or orders to be allowed outside, they must still keep the door locked and once he is inside, within ten seconds or less, he starts moaning and asking to be free again, asking for mother or anyway taking a immensely amusing stand…also, when he insisted on being trapped with the Godzilla, Igor says with brilliant comical zest…
‘It was nice working with you’ as in you will die in the next minute, you poor lunatic
9.4 out of 10
This formidable comedy is based on Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, the script has been nominated for an Academy Award and the film is included on The New York Times’ Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made list - https://www.listchallenges.com/new-yo... as one of the most amusing features you can watch…
Gene Wilder is fabulous as Doctor Frederick Frankenstein – he has a certain manner in pronouncing it, up to a point, and this causes one of the multiple scenes of mirth, when he meets with Igor aka equally outstanding Marty Feldman and the latter responds in kind…as in, all right, if you play games with the pronunciation of a name that we know so well around here…there we go, this is no longer Igor, but something like Yagor maybe…
He receives the testament of his famous grandfather, Victor von Frankenstein, from a box…but it was no easy thing, to get it from the cadaver that would not allow it to be extracted, even from the ‘dead hands ‘so to say – and the young neurosurgeon travels all the way to Transylvania – which is right where we live…well, nearby – and he would at one stage address a scientific gathering at the Academic Society of…Bucharest, where we are right now.
The humor is pervasive and throughout the trip we have moments when the announcements are intelligible, then the surgeon asks a boy about the ‘Transylvania Station’ as if there would be one railway station for a whole region, like say for the whole of Mississippi, and in the first place there is the same unintelligible gibberish, which is then replaced by ‘would like a shine for your shoes, sir’…the boy knew English all along.
At the ‘Transylvania Station’, Igor aka Marty Feldman is waiting, offers to take the bags, but when he sees that one if really heavy, he takes the light luggage and then invites the guest to the vehicle, which is a cart with a…Damsel inside, the florid, attractive Inga aka Teri Garr, who is supposed to and will be the assistant of the surgeon and will keep him company all the way to the sinister, farfetched and far away castle, where the scary Frau Blucher awaits- whenever her name is uttered, the horses jump and scream…indeed, Igor is naughty that he comes out the door, after all are inside, to say Blucher for the tenth time and see the animals agitated and scared…
While the new owner is accommodating, he hears a violin somewhere and decides to investigate with his assistant – how else – and physical comedy follows, as he is thrown by a secret door out and back into the room a few times, then he is caught and almost crushed in between, until they reach the secret library and then they would pursue the magic, supernatural operations that are destined to give life to a senseless being, following the recipe, the discoveries of the ancestor who has written everything in a book…
They select the freshly buried body of a giant, but the journey back to the ‘laboratory’ is not without agitation, for they slip and part of the cadaver are out, just as an agent of the ‘Transylvania polizei’ is walking about, saying he knows everyone, but Frederick Frankenstein is unfamiliar and they have to communicate with the good doctor pretending that one of the hands of the dead man is actually his, shaking it with the agent who remarks on how cold it is – dead cold we can say with insight – and then they put the fellow on the table and proceed to give him a brilliant brain, kept in one of the jars in the pantry presumably…
Only poor, helpless Igor slips and the good brain is lost and he has to replace it with what he would later call the organ of someone Abby Normal – alas, it was labeled ‘do not use under any circumstances, Abnormal brain’ – Igor being an interesting combination of someone very clever, shrewd, funny, but also portrayed as having something on the back – the doctor says upon their acquaintance that he is a surgeon and can do something about that thing on his back, but when he sees that the man does not acknowledge anything wrong – what thing on the back? – says never mind, only to ask later – but your thing was on the other side, as in the hump was leaning left and now it is to the right and in deference to sensitivity and perhaps politeness, he again retrains himself and stops in his tracks…
Meanwhile, the ‘natives are restless’ as in they have a reunion and show incipient nationalism – making us think of Trump’s rallies, the idiot that keeps calling the Covid 19 threat ‘the Chinese virus’ in his trademark distancing from anything that can be hi fault…when asked, he says he ‘is perfect’ they have done nothing wrong and takes no responsibility, even if he had acted as a cretin in this pandemic, which he denied as a hoax invented by democrats, which will drop to zero in days and miraculously disappear…only a few weeks ago that was his take on what is clearly as bad as it gets…
The ‘monster’ is created and he attacks when he sees fire, he is free to roam around and this is where we have again some hilarious scenes, such as the ones where he meets the ‘Blind Man’ aka legendary, Titan of cinema Gene Hackman, an isolated hermit who had prayed God for someone to visit and break his too long solitude and when the Creature arrives, the ascetic figure is overjoyed and puts out drink, only he breaks the can from which the visitor is supposed to toast, then he offers him one of the two cigars he had saved for this momentous celebration, but as he cannot see, he puts fire to the finger of the poor guest, who runs from this home in aggravation to meet with a child that he treats with kindness…
Doctor Frederick Frankenstein says to his team, Igor and Inga, that he would have to go into the cell where his Creation is kept and stay with him no matter what, come Hell or High Water, for he has to solve this drama and he needs to consider self-sacrifice for science and more to the same ‘motivational’ but oh so jocular purpose and then adds with gravitas that they must keep the door close, once he gets in with the so dangerous character, no matter what he says, if he begs, shouts, cries or orders to be allowed outside, they must still keep the door locked and once he is inside, within ten seconds or less, he starts moaning and asking to be free again, asking for mother or anyway taking a immensely amusing stand…also, when he insisted on being trapped with the Godzilla, Igor says with brilliant comical zest…
‘It was nice working with you’ as in you will die in the next minute, you poor lunatic
November 4, 2018
Young Frankenstein is unsurprisingly the novelization of the classic comedy film. I read it for fun after reading two versions of Frankenstein. It was my first movie novelization, and I was not sure what to expect.
The book is mostly the same as the movie. I think it was based on the script before filming, because there are a few differences. For instance, the will scene is expanded. It also includes a scene of Dr. Frankenstein reading medical records. Both add some unnecessary but welcome explanation to the plot of the movie. There are a few extra gags, and some are missing. I suspect that much of Marty Feldman’s dialogue was adlibbed, because many of his jokes were missing from the novel.
The book is not as funny as the movie. It really emphasizes how much of the humor of the movie is visual or based on the expert comedic timing of the actors. Gilbert Pearlman does his best to translate jokes to text, but it is hard to replace Gene Wilder’s delivery.
The book is mostly the same as the movie. I think it was based on the script before filming, because there are a few differences. For instance, the will scene is expanded. It also includes a scene of Dr. Frankenstein reading medical records. Both add some unnecessary but welcome explanation to the plot of the movie. There are a few extra gags, and some are missing. I suspect that much of Marty Feldman’s dialogue was adlibbed, because many of his jokes were missing from the novel.
The book is not as funny as the movie. It really emphasizes how much of the humor of the movie is visual or based on the expert comedic timing of the actors. Gilbert Pearlman does his best to translate jokes to text, but it is hard to replace Gene Wilder’s delivery.
February 10, 2014
When I was 14, I ordered this book through my junior high school's scholastic book club when it was first released circa November 1974. The movie which I had not seen yet, was released earlier that year. The book was extremely funny, the dialogues proved out to be identical to the movie's script. Essentially I believe it's essentially a screen play version. The book stands on its own legs. You'll still get all the jokes even without the actors timing. I eventually saw the movie about two years later at a drive-in theatre when it was rereleased for the summer and it was still fresh in my memory. By that time I still did not realize that Mel Brooks was one of the writers for "Get Smart".
June 13, 2013
This is a very funny film, but the book doesn't quite achieve that level of humor. That said, there is a charm in the pacing and the general silly story that unfolds here. Actually, even given the "three star" rating, something about this book has stuck with me in terms of how one could watch/study a film and adapt it in novel form. While the characters don't completely come alive, on the surface, they do become vivid to someone who has seen--and somewhat remembers--the film. If anything, this book has sparked an interest in novelizations.
February 27, 2024
The only reason I actually read this was because it fit in my pocket so I could take it to a concert. And also Gene Wilder, RIP. Sadly some jokes didn’t get translated to the novelisation (‘walk this way’) and some got a bit overplayed because y’know. It’s not the movie. The movie is 10/10 no notes one of my faves, and this was simply a novelisation of that! There’s not really much to criticise.
April 27, 2023
I don't think I've ever read a film novelization of a comedy but I had to give this a try. Not a lot to it but it was interesting reading what I had seen in the movie and to read what the creature was thinking. I'm glad to report that the humor still came through.
September 20, 2024
It’s a direct adaptation of the film, and so it’s page-turningly funny and weirdly marvelous as a story. Do you catch yourself just wanting to watch the movie? Of course. (That’s what I’m about to do in one hour! On the big screen!)
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March 30, 2021It took me so long to finish such a short book.
July 10, 2022
I love everything Frankenstein. And I have seen the movie plenty of times so I wanted to read the book as well.
June 23, 2024
More colorful than the movie.
November 1, 2024
This book was hilarious. I really love Mel Brooks’ earlier humor. His later stuff got a little corny, in my opinion. If you don’t have a sense of humor, don’t even bother with this.
September 17, 2025
Aprobado por los pelos, realmente es una curiosidad, mucho mejor ver la película y disfrutarla
January 26, 2026
The Genius of the film still manages to scintillate on the page.
June 25, 2013
This book served as my "captions" before this movie was ever captioned. I read and reread it so often that I had it all but memorized. Years later on my honeymoon in Hawaii, I happened to catch the movie on an uncaptioned tv and my memory of the dialogue was still so good that I could follow the movie as if it was captioned.
August 2, 2021
It's always been one of my very favorite comedy movies, so when I found the original novel version in a used bookstore, I had to get it! It was a fun read because not only are all the classic jokes there, but there were extra scenes and funny lines too because the book is based on the original screenplay by Mel Brooks & Gene Wilder! :)
May 25, 2012
My review is here. http://www.misterfweem.blogspot.com/2... Alas, it's nowhere near as good as the movie. Didn't expect it to be as good, but I didn't expect it to be this bad either.
July 5, 2012
Words only just doesn't due this movie justice. But it's not bad to read AFTER you've seen it.
August 12, 2013
Basically the screenplay , read this as a child and nostalgia got the better of me so read it again. Watch the film it's hilarious.
February 19, 2014
Competently done novelization of the movie script. Kinda lies flat without the visuals, though.
June 12, 2014
just for fun
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May 18, 2018I have read this boo and this book is interesting. this is the first version of frankenstein, which is really awesom. the story of this book is, there is scientist who is so smart and brililant and his grand father was greatest scientist. heś grandfather is died but now he is on his way to search where he died and who and eventually he finds a castle and caretaker of castle who this scientist is. when scientist contact that caretaker he told everything. now the scientist going to castle and to see what his grandfather had discovered and explored when he was alive. he reach the castle and see that caretaker is so creepy and where the funny part started of movie. so when he get to castle he see that there is a girl and the girl is really interested in scientist but he is not but caretaker is interested in girl but girl is not. the scientist asked where is my grandfatherś room and when he reaches there he finds nothing but as the time goes he started discovering his grandfatherś stuff which was very rare and valuable. after he was with that girl and they accidentally found a room behind the shelf the room had stairs which goes downward and when they went there they saw the frankstein.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews