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Dracula

Bram Stoker

Start date: March 1, 2020

Finish date: March 31, 2020

Discussion: Group Reads

Why we're reading this: March 2020 Completist Selection - Irish Authors Poll Winner
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What Members Thought

Mar 23, 2024 Michael Finocchiaro rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, novels, classics, horror, fiction, irish-19th-c

I can definitely understand why this is such a timeless classic. The epistolary format was a lot of fun because it forces the reader to really pay attention and fill in the blanks along the way. There is also the idea of the letters crossing each other and arriving out of order. I liked the heavy atmosphere (even if it was a bit overly dramatic, but then this is Victorian literature so I got over it) and the Count himself was fascinating. I was surprised that he is described at one point as havi ...more

29 likes · Like · see review

Nov 05, 2020 Tom rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Why a 5 Star rating? Well mainly because besides Sherlock Holmes, Dracula is an iconic literary character that has been immortalized in countless renditions of theatrical plays, books, films, TV adaptations, games and comics. When an author creates a story and the character he creates becomes a literary legend, it deserves the recognition of a 5 Star Classic. "Tales of the supernatural had been circulating in Romanian folklore for centuries when Irish writer Bram Stoker picked up the thread and Why a 5 Star rating? Well mainly because besides Sherlock Holmes, Dracula is an iconic literary character that has been immortalized in countless renditions of theatrical plays, books, films, TV adaptations, games and comics. When an author creates a story and the character he creates becomes a literary legend, it deserves the recognition of a 5 Star Classic. "Tales of the supernatural had been circulating in Romanian folklore for centuries when Irish writer Bram Stoker picked up the thread and spun it into a golden tale of ghoulishness that has never been out of print since its first publication in 1897." http://romaniatourism.com/dracula-leg...
The Introduction by Brooke Allen is a great Bram Stoker mini biography which gives the reader a knowledgeable background on the author.

NEED A LITTLE MORE DRACULA?
If you are in the mood for a film adaptation of Dracula I recommend that you watch a free film found on YouTube. Although admittedly the film production is quite dated and honestly very cheesy and cheaply done the portrayal of Dracula done by Louis Jourdan is well worth the watching.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96OII...
It is a BBC Adaptation from 1977. Often considered the most faithful version to the novel with Louis Jourdan as the Count. Believe me except for the physical description Jourdan nails Stoker's Dracula. To show Jourdan's masterful portrayal of the Count watch this 4:37 minute clip if you can't watch the 2 and a half hour movie. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_w3a... Jourdan makes Lugosi look like a cardboard cut-out cartoon character (IMHO). The following I have found is an accurate critique of the 1977 film adaptation.
"Devotees of vampire cinema have long esteemed this heretofore hard-to-see adaptation of Bram Stoker's novel, made for BBC-TV in 1977. Count Dracula puts Louis Jourdan in the fangs and cape, in a version subtitled--and played as--a Gothic romance. This is one of those 1970s TV productions that use film for exteriors and video for the interiors, a tactic that increases the general sense of cheapness about the whole thing (although the location stuff is good, including scenes on the cliffs of Whitby, the port town where Dracula comes to visit England). With 150 minutes to play with, the production has more of Stoker than many film versions include, although there's still some shuffling of the original. It's all a bit slow, and surprisingly cheesy at times, even with the occasional startling image: Dracula scooting bat-like down the side of his castle, or the vampire brides preparing to devour a baby (a scene cut from some subsequent showings of the series, but restored here). Frank Finlay makes a focused Van Helsing--a minimum of camping, thankfully--and Susan Penhaligon and Judi Bowker are respectively hot and cold as Lucy and Mina. Jourdan is effective, although he's off screen a lot and really gets his good bites in toward the end. You'll need some patience, but Jourdan drinks it dry." --Robert Horton Robert Horton is a member of the National Society of Film Critics, and the longtime film critic for the Herald (Everett, WA), and Seattle Weekly. He is a regular contributor to Film Comment magazine ...more

18 likes · Like · see review

Oct 20, 2018 Jess Penhallow rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 19th-century, boxall-s, uk, turkey, hungary, romania

After reading a few disappointing examples of late 19th/early 20th century genre fiction I wasn't sure if I was going to like the daddy of genre fiction but I actually did. I still don't think that this type of book is really for me but I can appreciate how this book influenced so many other books not only vampire or horror books but other genre books with the use of diary and letter entries, multiple perspectives and a 'five man band' to name but a few.

There were definitely moments when it dra ...more

14 likes · Like · see review

Oct 21, 2020 Frances rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Prior to reading this book, Dracula for me was Gary Oldman in a bad wig, scuttling down a castle wall. I thought that Hollywood gave him a bad rep, and I vowed that I would get to the truth and set the record straight when I got the chance by reading “Dracula” of Bram Stoker. Well, I still don’t know much about Dracula. The book, as it turned out, is more about those who sought his undoing.

A friend had gifted me with the Kindle-in-Motion version, and I found myself looking forward to the illust Prior to reading this book, Dracula for me was Gary Oldman in a bad wig, scuttling down a castle wall. I thought that Hollywood gave him a bad rep, and I vowed that I would get to the truth and set the record straight when I got the chance by reading “Dracula” of Bram Stoker. Well, I still don’t know much about Dracula. The book, as it turned out, is more about those who sought his undoing.

A friend had gifted me with the Kindle-in-Motion version, and I found myself looking forward to the illustrations, like a child, as the characters did tend to ramble. I appreciate the epistolary style that the author used, but the characters did so like to hear themselves talk! It’s a good thing that 1 used shorthand, and 1 used a phonograph, or else they would have had cramped fingers. 😜

For a book that was written during its time period, it must have been quite amazing. Reading it now after having read over 100 post-apocalyptic books (zombies, tech that targets cells, etc) has desensitized me, I must admit. I wanted to read about a monster for Halloween Month, and I didn’t get a monster story. Instead I got a story about camaraderie.

At the end of the book, there’s a short note about Abraham Stoker that says his imagination as a child was shaped by vivid stories his mother told him about the 1832 cholera epidemic. Perhaps for him, he has always had this fear of becoming ill and wasting away -and this had influenced his writing. And perhaps this story is about how by helping each other, we can find a cure (or at least survive this illness). And maybe he found comfort in these thoughts. And that’s why this story is not about the monster but about the people. And perhaps this is why Dracula would be a good book to be reading this Halloween after all? ❤️

Merged review:

3.5⭐️
Prior to reading this book, Dracula for me was Gary Oldman in a bad wig, scuttling down a castle wall. I thought that Hollywood gave him a bad rep, and I vowed that I would get to the truth and set the record straight when I got the chance by reading “Dracula” of Bram Stoker. Well, I still don’t know much about Dracula. The book, as it turned out, is more about those who sought his undoing.

A friend had gifted me with the Kindle-in-Motion version, and I found myself looking forward to the illustrations, like a child, as the characters did tend to ramble. I appreciate the epistolary style that the author used, but the characters did so like to hear themselves talk! It’s a good thing that 1 used shorthand, and 1 used a phonograph, or else they would have had cramped fingers. 😜

For a book that was written during its time period, it must have been quite amazing. Reading it now after having read over 100 post-apocalyptic books (zombies, tech that targets cells, etc) has desensitized me, I must admit. I wanted to read about a monster for Halloween Month, and I didn’t get a monster story. Instead I got a story about camaraderie.

At the end of the book, there’s a short note about Abraham Stoker that says his imagination as a child was shaped by vivid stories his mother told him about the 1832 cholera epidemic. Perhaps for him, he has always had this fear of becoming ill and wasting away -and this had influenced his writing. And perhaps this story is about how by helping each other, we can find a cure (or at least survive this illness). And maybe he found comfort in these thoughts. And that’s why this story is not about the monster but about the people. And perhaps this is why Dracula would be a good book to be reading this Halloween after all? ❤️ ...more

15 likes · Like · see review

Dec 20, 2018 Tara rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, owned, mythgard-academy, fantasy

As with my recent reading of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, it is impossible to view this book inside a vacuum, and since Count Dracula has become a part of our society's mental furniture, I find it difficult to review the book on its own merits alone. You can see how the tone and content of this book would have been seen as both shocking and grotesque to Victorian audiences. And yet even in our "advanced" modern society, there is still something breath-takingly stark and terrifying about the cont ...more

4 likes · Like · see review

Jan 03, 2019 Summer rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: venture-to-the-vampiric

Venture to the Vampiric #3

Ah, the classic vampire novel!!

It's raised from a 4 (from memory) to a 5 star!

Those beginning chapters are just exquisite, the mystery and the atmosphere and the intrigue... just top notch.

There are parts of the novel where it gets a little slow, but I just love the form of narration, switching back and forth through the handful of key narrators and news articles and messages. I also adore that the novel is building itself up as it's being written, you get shown when/ho Venture to the Vampiric #3

Ah, the classic vampire novel!!

It's raised from a 4 (from memory) to a 5 star!

Those beginning chapters are just exquisite, the mystery and the atmosphere and the intrigue... just top notch.

There are parts of the novel where it gets a little slow, but I just love the form of narration, switching back and forth through the handful of key narrators and news articles and messages. I also adore that the novel is building itself up as it's being written, you get shown when/how the collection of letters/diaries etc. is being put together as you read, when they're being transcribed and each persons experience/diaries added to the collection, until we discover at the end its a complete document which only our protagonists, and their son, will read. It's just so creative and I absolutely love that.

This is a second read for me, really focusing on the essence of the 'vampire' here, what traits and lore does the novel set out? Such a clever development of the myths and stories that came before it. It struck me that the novel did really religify (if that's a word) the concept, making a clear distinction between the devil/vampires, and the holiness of God and his followers.

Dracula was a sufficiently strong and formidable foe, but with just enough weaknesses, and timing, to bring about his defeat. I'd actually forgotten the ending, and I was a little worried towards the end that Dracula might actually win! Losing Lucy and the battle for Mina demonstrated that it may not always be a happy ending.

I really enjoyed the female vampire characters (although I don't love the reason behind it - almost subjugation of women... - but I'll ignore that for now). The wives and the bid for new wives were a really creepy concept, but added a flair to the story. Van Helsing too is such a fantastic character, and Dr. Seward brings the themes of mental illness in a time in history when it was only just beginning to be understood...

The ending, too, almost brought tears to my eyes! I didn't remember poor Quincey, but I love that we found out their son was named Quincey, and our characters all got a happy ending. They're heroes - but no one, except their son, will ever know!

Fantastic novel. ...more

2 likes · Like · see review