This is the first in what will most likely be a series of small reviews for the “classics of literature” that I’m going to be reading on my new nook. Remember, I am not an English major, nor am I a trained critic, so these might not be the best reviews that you’ll ever read but I will at least endeavor to make them entertaining.
I decided to start with one of the three books that came preloaded with it. I was happy to see that Dracula was one of those titles. Alas, that happiness was to be short lived.
I must admit that I was expecting a little more from one of the cornerstones of modern horror. This book, which has never been out of print and has inspired countless other vampire stories was, in my opinion, awful. This thing read like the campaign notes of someone with OCD-like need to record every detail of the game. The only thing missing are the dice rolls and the references to Mountain Dew and Cheetos. The protagonists take every opportunity to draw out the scenes for as long as possible and to repeat themselves and each other as often as they possibly can.
One thing that I found amazing, having seen several movies starring the Count, is that the title character is almost completely absent from most of the book. Other than the opening chapters (where Jonathan Harker lets you know over and over and over again how trapped he has become in the castle) Dracula himself shows up something like three or four times, out of the nearly 300 pages of the version that I read, but don’t worry, the other characters are more than happy to fill the pages between the beginning and the end.
I’m not trying to harp on this in some sad attempt to earn “cool points,” I honestly started reading this expecting to enjoy it, but this turned out to be, in my opinion, one of the most boring things I’ve ever read. I have to assume it’s because I don’t have a Victorian mindset and have been desensitized to the bits of the book that surely shocked 19th century readers. In the end, I can only recommend this book to people who wish to compare it the various movie adaptations that have been made.
The other two books that came preloaded on the nook were Little Women by Louisa May Alcott and Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. I’ll be skipping straight to Pride and Prejudice for the next review as it’s the one I have more interest in.
