Wait what about the Movie?

Dracula

By: Bram Stoker

Aside from over romanticized modern vampire stories my knowledge of Dracula is mostly based on the 1992 movie. Gary Oldman played Dracula. Winona and Keanu might have gotten married. Watch the movie. It’s great.

I was still a little nervous about finally picking up the novel.

I have like an ingrained belief that any classic is automatically going to being boring or at least hard to get through with dialect I can’t make any sense of.

Dracula was such a surprise as a fast and really engrossing read. Although there were a couple of characters I couldn’t make sense of their speech. And I feel a little bit like Van Helsing’s manner of speaking went more off toward the end of the book.  But that definitely didn’t bother me.

The story is told mostly in journal form with some occasional letters from multiples POV’s which definitely helped keep it rolling.

I was a little surprised that the big romance element from the movie was missing. And while I loved Mina’s bravery and brains Stoker could have balanced the worship of the other male characters for first Lucy and Mina out a little bit more. I suppose it’s a balance though between the condescension of always wanting to put her up on a pedestal so she could be soft and not break and recognizing her bravery and brains so points.

The end felt a little anti-climatic to- but again that’s probably just the movie shoving into my brain.

I have to admit to I thought this book as much better in the horror category than Frankenstein which I mostly found utterly sad when I finally read that novel. Dracula has it’s issues but I’m glad I finally picked it up for Halloween reading.

Recommend: Yes.