City of Night (Dean Koontz's Frankenstein, Book 2)

Book Description

From the celebrated imagination of Dean Koontz comes a powerful reworking of one of the classic stories of all time. If you think you know the legend, you know only half the truth. Here is the mystery, the myth, the terror, and the magic of…

Dean Koontz's City of the Night

They are stronger, heal better, and think faster than any humans ever created—and they must be destroyed. But not even Victor Helios—once Frankenstein—can stop the engineered killers he’s set loose on a reign of terror through modern-day New Orleans. Now the only hope rests in a one-time “monster” and his all-too-human partners, Detectives Carson O’Connor and Michael Maddison. Deucalion’s centuries-old history began as Victor’s first and failed attempt to build the perfect human–and it is fated to end in the ultimate confrontation between a damned creature and his mad creator. But first Deucalion must destroy a monstrosity not even Victor’s malignant mind could have imagined—an indestructible entity that steps out of humankind’s collective nightmare with one purpose: to replace us.

Customer Reviews:

Frankenstein 2.......2007-09-21

This is one of the best books I have ever read.I e-mailed Dean about when Frankenstein 3 would be published and he said maybe in 2008. At the end of the book ask youself if you would?

Missing final pages.......2007-07-05

I think someone ripped the ending out of my book before I got there. Very disappointing.

I only bought this to get up to the free shipping costs........2007-06-17

I usually acquire my books from the VA library at the hospital. They have a nice policy of read one, leave one. I would never actually purchase a koontz book anymore unless, like in this case, I needed to pad my purchase amount to qualify for the free shipping. Hence, this book only cost me around $2.00 and so far, through chapter five, it sucks. Don't buy it. Check it out at a library or find it at a yard sale or used book store. This is a story, (supposed trilogy,) that would actually benefit from a canine character.

Another Great Book by Koontz.......2007-06-11

Dean Koontz rocks I have been reading his books since I was 12 (and like back then I still keep lights on when I am done reading)

WHERE IS BOOK #3

You are killing me with anticipation Dean!!!!!

City Of Night.......2007-05-24

I enjoyed this book buuuuutttttt......what happened to Book 3? Does anyone know?

Prodigal Son (Dean Koontz's Frankenstein, Book 1)

Average customer rating:

Frankenstein 1
Loved it!!!
What a great book!
WHAT A SURPISE...A GREAT BOOK!!!
Frankenstein is NO Odd Thomas

Prodigal Son (Dean Koontz's Frankenstein, Book 1)
Dean Koontz , and Kevin J. Anderson
Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0553587889
Release Date: 2005-01-25

Book Description

From the celebrated imagination of Dean Koontz comes a powerful reworking of one of the classic stories of all time. If you think you know the story, you know only half the truth. Get ready for the mystery, the myth, the terror, and the magic of…

Dean Koontz's Prodigal Son

Every city has secrets. But none as terrible as this. His name is Deucalion, a tattooed man of mysterious origin, a sleight-of-reality artist who’s traveled the centuries with a secret worse than death. He arrives as a serial killer stalks the streets, a killer who carefully selects his victims for the humanity that is missing in himself. Detective Carson O’Connor is cool, cynical, and every bit as tough as she looks. Her partner Michael Maddison would back her up all the way to Hell itself–and that just may be where this case ends up. For the no-nonsense O’Connor is suddenly talking about an ages-old conspiracy, a near immortal race of beings, and killers that are more—and less—than human. Soon it will be clear that as crazy as she sounds, the truth is even more ominous. For their quarry isn’t merely a homicidal maniac—but his deranged maker.

Customer Reviews:

Frankenstein 1.......2007-09-21

This is one of the best books I have ever read. Read this book and meet Randall 6.

Loved it!!!.......2007-09-12

I bought this book because it was one of the few I hadn't read of Koontz yet. I didn't know what to expect because the Frankenstein idea has become almost a cliche. I was pleasantly surprised. I couldn't put the book down. I immediatelly went out and bought book 2. Now I'm waiting for the third to be written. I strongly recommend this book for any Koontz fan.

What a great book!.......2007-08-30

Thank you Dean for this marvelous book. It's so fun and entertaining to read. Very suspensefull too. I look forward to reading book 2.

WHAT A SURPISE...A GREAT BOOK!!!.......2007-07-09

When I first saw this book for sale, I had doubts about how good it would be considering the title "Prodigal Son - Dean Koontz's Frankenstein". But being an avid Dean Koontz fan I ordered and read it despite my doubts. Wow! Next to the "Odd Thomas" trilogy, the "Frankenstein" books are my favorites. The characters are real, the story is interesting & fast-paced. I absolutely loved Book 1 and Book 2. I can't wait for number 3 to come out!

Frankenstein is NO Odd Thomas.......2007-05-31

Although this book is imaginative as far a continuing the present day life of Victor Frankenstein and his creations I was unimpressed. Its a quick read but not the on your seat type of book. Don't get me wrong its ok. I just expected a lot more.

Average customer rating:

frankenstein
Prometheus
One of the greatest stories told
DO NOT BUY THIS EDITION!!!!!!
Shelley's Magnum Opus

Frankenstein (Enriched Classics)
Mary Shelley
Manufacturer: Pocket
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0743487583

Book Description

ENDURING LITERATURE ILLUMINATED

BY PRACTICAL SCHOLARSHIP

A timeless, terrifying tale of one man's obsession to create life -- and the monster that became his legacy.

EACH ENRICHED CLASSIC EDITION INCLUDES:

• A concise introduction that gives readers important background information

• A chronology of the author's life and work

• A timeline of significant events that provides the book's historical context

• An outline of key themes and plot points to help readers form their own interpretations

• Detailed explanatory notes

• Critical analysis, including contemporary and modern perspectives on the work

• Discussion questions to promote lively classroom and book group interaction

• A list of recommended related books and films to broaden the reader's experience

Enriched Classics offer readers affordable editions of great works of literature enhanced by helpful notes and insightful commentary. The scholarship provided in Enriched Classics enables readers to appreciate, understand, and enjoy the world's finest books to their full potential.

SERIES EDITED BY CYNTHIA BRANTLEY JOHNSON

Customer Reviews:

frankenstein.......2007-07-29

came next day in perfect condition my sister needed it for school and she was very pleased thank you

Prometheus.......2007-03-10

On my recent travels, I finished reading Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.

Written in the Gothic style, it's also written as one would tell a ghost story: minimalist in its descriptions of setting, focusing on character and action more than anything else. It's written in the first person, with varying narrators allowing for varied points of view. Despite the threadbare descriptions of setting, Shelley does a good job of conveying with those few words key aspects of the setting, giving her story great atmosphere.

Gothic stories always are high on emotion, and not high on reasoning thought, and this is no exception. I am still left wondering how folks can consider this a work of science fiction. It is more fantasy than science fiction: man takes on the role of God, man's creation, like God's, goes awry, and the pair are locked in a monumental struggle. Fantasy's themes often go to the nature of characters trying to choose between right and wrong, while science fiction's themes go towards the consequences of technology and science, without the necessity of morality, and Frankenstein tends towards fantasy under that line of thinking...hence, the alternate title, "The Modern Prometheus".

All in all, an entertaining, and quick read.

One of the greatest stories told.......2007-02-28

In Mary Shelley's novel, there are various statements about the use of science. The field of eugenics is brought into question. The issue of cloning is brought into perspective way before its time. Shelley's novel is prophetic in so many ways for revealing the debates and scientific issues of contemporary times. From the recent FDA consideration of livestock cloning to genetically engineered crops, these controversial issues have been compared to Frankenstein science. Other past scientific innovations such as the use of pesticides like DDT have led to failure and proved dangerous for human civilization. These too were once compared to Frankenstein science, yet humankind persisted on using these chemicals, all for reasons of convenience and capital ambition on the part of corporations involved. We may see Shelley's Frankenstein as the first great scientific warning to humans in an industrial world. It may also be seen as the beginning of environmental awareness. This awareness concerns humans within their own environments such as parent/child relationships and childhood influences, as well as human impact on nature.

DO NOT BUY THIS EDITION!!!!!!.......2007-01-31

This "enriched classics" is a bowdlerized version of Mary Shelley's original text. It eliminates passages, changes the diction, abridges the chapters, and changes the entire structure of the novel. Our school bought this edition thinking that the additional notes would be helpful to students studying the text, but there was no indication at all on Amazon's website that this version had been substantially altered by the editors. The book is so bowdlerized that our school bought an entire new set of texts for the students at a considerable finanacial loss for the school. WHATEVER YOU DO, BUY SOME OTHER VERSION OF FRANKENSTEIN. THIS ONE IS A MONSTER CREATED BY SOMEONE WHO HAS NO RESPECT FOR THE AUTHOR. BANTAM, PUFFIN, OXFORD -- THEY ARE ALL FINE. Irene Nicastro, English teacher, The American School of The Hague.

Shelley's Magnum Opus.......2007-01-19

When people think of horror, the image of Boris Karloff's Frankenstein can generally be expected to pop into their heads, usually within the first minute of the word "horror"s utterance.
Yet Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is not horror. It is science-fiction - and, for that matter, one of the first works of science-fiction ever written, as well as one of the most brilliant. While many of the nineteenth-century authors who boldly dove into the realm of the unknown came back with fascinating baubels that are now horribly dated, "Frankenstein" maintains its power and prescience in three ways:
1) Its foremost theme is that of life itself - what is it that separates inanimate tissue from its living counterpart, and what in turn can give sentience to what might otherwise be a mindless organism. The answers to these questions have not yet been discovered, and are indeed probably in greater controversy today than they were in Shelley's own time.
2) Another aspect timeless aspect of this book is its exploration into the responsibilities of creation - not merely scientific creation, but of any sort of creation, of any situation in which a human being with an idea sees it through to the finish, only to find that unexpected consequences await him/her.
3) The drama itself - of a man fleeing from a monster, and of a monster trying desperately to assert his manhood - is as poignant as it is profound, and the reader who isn't moved by the plights of both these characters lacks either the heart to care or the brain to understand.
It is a shame that people today associate the word Frankenstein with cheap and formulaic horror films. Indeed, there is a fair amount of irony that Frankenstein is often thought of as a run-of-the-mill hideous monster, when indeed it was precisely that sort of knee-jerk superficiality and intolerance that Shelley herself was trying to combat. Either way, Frankenstein is one of those rare books that managed to create its own genre without later being dated by countless similar efforts. No matter how great future science fictions writers may become, they will always walk in the shadow of Frankenstein.

Average customer rating:

Very, Very Good!
Frankenstein Makes Us Laugh
Frankenstein Makes a family laugh & appreciate poetry
great job
Great Read!

Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich
Adam Rex
Manufacturer: Harcourt Children's Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0152057668

Book Description

Being a monster isn't all frightening villagers and sucking blood. Monsters have their trials, too. Poor Frankenstein's cupboard is bare, Wolfman is in need of some household help, and it's best not to get started on Dracula’s hygiene issues. What could be scarier?

Nineteen hilarious poems delve into the secret lives of the Creature from the Black Lagoon, Bigfoot, Godzilla, and others. In a range of styles that pay homage to everyone from Charles Schulz to John James Audubon, the monstrously talented Adam Rex uncovers horrific--and clever--truths you won't want to miss.

Customer Reviews:

Very, Very Good!.......2007-05-23

This long titled book is a collection of Adam Rex's short rhyming tales about the classic monsters. Hard core fan critics of particular monsters may well point out that Frankenstein was actually the scientist who created the monster but obviously referring to the creature as Frankenstein's Monster would make the rhyming hard and increase the already lengthy title of this book as well so I don't think we should be too picky. Adam Rex has also drawn spectacular colour illustrations on every page which are full of detail. You'll even find miniature rhyming verses and picture references to other monsters within such as The Invisible Man on a milk carton with the words Have You Seen Me? being carried by the Hunchback of Notre Dame in the rhyme about that character.

Horror's classic characters who have tales inside include Griffin from H.G. Well's story The Invisible Man. Frankenstein's monster from Mary Shelley's classic tale. The Creature of the Black Lagoon, Phantom of the Opera (he must have been the author's favourite as he has a few stories within), Witches, Wolfman (well his best friend's letter to him anyway), Count Dracula, The Mummy, Yeti, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Dr Jekyll, Zombies, Bigfoot, Godzilla and the most terrifying monster of all - the Dentist!

This is a very entertaining and funny book. The illustrations mean it will appeal to children as well as adults.

Frankenstein Makes Us Laugh.......2007-04-13

I bought this for my seven year old son who is NOT a poetry fan, and he LOVES it. He even asked if he could take it to school and read his favorite poem, The Creature from the Black Lagoon Doesn't Wait an Hour Before Swimming, out loud to his class. This is a boy who is not a fan of oral reading, ESPECIALLY in front of his classmates! He and I also get the Phantom of the Opera songs stuck in our heads, and walk around singing "There was a phantom had a song and BINGO was its name-o," and "All around the Opera House the Phantom throws a tantrum. The song won't die -- he doesn't know why. "Stop!" goes the Phantom."

All three of my kids enjoy the poems and pictures in this book, but I think it particularly appeals to boys who might otherwise not be very interested in poetry. (I have previously bought books of outer space poems and transportation poems for my son, and he was not interested in them at all.)

I will buy this book as a gift for several other kids!

Frankenstein Makes a family laugh & appreciate poetry.......2007-02-27

We borrowed this book from our town library for our children ages 7-12. Ben 2nd grade, Jack 3rd grade and Geneva 6th grade LOVED THIS BOOK! Parents that watched those 60's monster movie classics will love how those monsters all appear in this book of hilarious poems. The boys especially liked the Phantom of the Opera poem set to B-I-N-G-O.
There was a phantom had a song, and BINGO was it's name-o. B-I-N-G-O See? I told you so. B-I-N-G-O By jingo! What a lame-o.
It bugged the Phantom all night long. He never was the same-o. (clap) His cheeks don't show, (clap) if they did though, (clap) we'd see them glow flamingo pink with shame-o.
At least the phantom knows it's wrong, It caused him to proclaim-o,
(clap)(clap)"I'll have no...(clap)(clap)peace, and so...(clap)(clap) I'll just go and haunt a bingo game-o."
Classic poetry, not, but a lot of family fun and reading enthusiasm, so. I brought this book to the computer to write my review and the kids took it to run off and read it and laugh over. What more do you want from a children's book? We are buying this book as a gift to our school library and also friends' birthdays. Parents will appreciate the joy this book brings to their kids.

great job.......2007-02-15

Well done. I recieved the book in about three days and the quality is great. I now prefer Amazon over paying a fortune at Barnes abd Nobel and Borders. The book is beautifull!!! I am a Rex fan for life!

Thanks

Great Read!.......2007-02-09

My five year old son LOVES this book. The picture are amazing. He is a big monster fan, and we have checked this book out at the library multiple times. Look for the phantom of the opera parts! If you like this book, also read "Making Friends With Frankenstein" and "Monster Goose". This book is cute and entertaining. Well written and very well illustrated.

Son of Frankenstein : Universal Filmscripts Series Classic Horror Films Volume 3 (Autographed Edition)

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Son of Frankenstein : Universal Filmscripts Series Classic Horror Films Volume 3 (Autographed Edition)

Manufacturer: Magicimage Filmbooks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1882127110

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Free SF Reader
Frankenstein: The Good and the Bad
Still the best
Gothic at its best
After 200 years, Shelley's still got it!

Frankenstein (Bantam Classics)
Mary Shelley
Manufacturer: Bantam Classics
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0553212478
Release Date: 1984-05-01

Amazon.com

Frankenstein, loved by many decades of readers and praised by such eminent literary critics as Harold Bloom, seems hardly to need a recommendation. If you haven't read it recently, though, you may not remember the sweeping force of the prose, the grotesque, surreal imagery, and the multilayered doppelgänger themes of Mary Shelley's masterpiece. As fantasy writer Jane Yolen writes of this (the reviewer's favorite) edition, "The strong black and whites of the main text [illustrations] are dark and brooding, with unremitting shadows and stark contrasts. But the central conversation with the monster--who owes nothing to the overused movie image … but is rather the novel's charnel-house composite--is where [Barry] Moser's illustrations show their greatest power ... The viewer can all but smell the powerful stench of the monster's breath as its words spill out across the page. Strong book-making for one of the world's strongest and most remarkable books." Includes an illuminating afterword by Joyce Carol Oates.

Book Description

"I saw the pale student of unhallowed arts kneeling beside the thing he had put together. I saw the hideous phantasm of a man stretched out, and then, on the working of some powerful engine, show signs of life and stir with an uneasy, half-vital motion." A summer evening's ghost stories, lonely insomnia in a moonlit Alpine's room, and a runaway imagination--fired by philosophical discussions with Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley about science, galvanism, and the origins of life--conspired to produce for Marry Shelley this haunting night specter. By morning, it had become the germ of her Romantic masterpiece, Frankenstein.

Written in 1816 when she was only nineteen, Mary Shelley's novel of "The Modern Prometheus" chillingly dramatized the dangerous potential of life begotten upon a laboratory table. A frightening creation myth for our own time, Frankenstein remains one of the greatest horror stories ever written and is an undisputed classic of its kind.

Customer Reviews:

Free SF Reader.......2007-09-03

It is pretty surprising that something come up with almost on a whim to
provide a diversion has come to be such an important text for two
genres, both horror and science fiction.

Victor Frankenstein's obsession with the creation of life ultimately ends in tragedy and death for those around him.

Frankenstein: The Good and the Bad.......2007-04-29

One reason why I don't like this book is because I don;t like scarcy books, but this is a very interesting book. I also think that it is totally cool that a woman wrote it because that proves that women can like spooky stories even if most don't.

Still the best.......2007-04-15

Somehow, 175 years after it was first written, this story keeps holding our attention. Not just that, it says more to our modern world than it ever said before.

Popularized versions of this story lack all the depth of Shelley's original. Yes, her monster was physically huge, powerful, and respulsive. In her version, though, he's a thinking, feeling, and deeply intelligent person. He is deeply hurt by the universal, unreasoning loathing that judges only his face - even from the man who created him. The creation has a majestic capacity for affection but, in a credible transformation of emotional alchemy, that whole capacity turns to rage. He is not an image of hate, but a mirror of it.

The hubristic biotechnologist has an immediacy today that Shelley could scarcely have imagined. So, I think, does the vengeful lashing out by people who feel they have suffered grievous wrongs, leading to a deadly spiral of increasing hatred by all parties. I just hope that current readers will take the time needed to absorb this book properly - it was never paced for today's ADD-driven generation.

//wiredweird

Gothic at its best.......2006-12-16

Mary Shelley was the daughter of the famous feminist and author, Mary Wollstonecraft, who is best known for her work The Vindication of the Rights of Women. In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, a young university student, Victor Frankenstein, obsesses with wanting to know the secret to life. He studies chemistry and natural philosophy with the goal of being able to create a human out of spare body parts. After months of constant work in his laboratory, Frankenstein attains his goal and brings his creation to life. Frankenstein is immediately overwrought by fear and remorse at the sight of his creation, a "monster." The next morning, he decides to destroy his creation but finds that the monster has escaped. The monster, unlike other humans, has no social preparation or education; thus, it is unequipped to take care of itself either physically or emotionally. The monster lives in the forest like an animal without knowledge of "self" or understanding of its surroundings. The monster happens upon a hut inhabited by a poor family and is able to find shelter in a shed adjacent to the hut. For several months, the monster starts to gain knowledge of human life by observing the daily life of the hut's inhabitants through a crack in the wall. The monster's education of language and letters begins when he listens to one of them learning the French language. During this period, the monster also learns of human society and comes to the realization that he is grotesque and alone in the world. Armed with his newfound ability to read, he reads three books that he found in a leather satchel in the woods. Goethe's Sorrows of Young Werther, Milton's Paradise Lost, and a volume of Plutarch's Lives. The monster, not knowing any better, read these books thinking them to be facts about human history. From Plutarch's works, he learns of humankind's virtues. However, it is Paradise Lost that has a most interesting effect on the monster's understanding of self. The monster at first identifies with Adam, "I was apparently united by no link to any other being in existence." The monster, armed only with his limited education, thought that he would introduce himself to the cottagers and depend on their virtue and benevolence; traits he believed from his readings that all humans possessed. However, soon after his first encounter with the cottagers, he is beaten and chased off because his ugliness frightens people. The monster is overwrought by a feeling of perplexity by this reaction, since he thought he would gain their trust and love, which he observed them generously give to each other on so many occasions. He receives further confirmation of how his ugliness repels people when, sometime later, he saves a young girl from drowning and the girl's father shoots at him because he is frightful to look at. The monster quickly realizes that the books really lied to him. He found no benevolence or virtue among humans, even from his creator. At every turn in his life, humans are judging him solely based on his looks. The monster soon realizes that it is not Adam, the perfect being enjoying the world, which he is most alike. Instead, he comes to realize that he most represents Satan. The monster is jealous of the happiness he sees humans enjoy that he has never attained for himself. The monster tells Frankenstein that he found his lab journal in his coat pocket and read it with increasing hate and despair as he came to understand what Frankenstein's intent was in creating him. The monster curses Frankenstein for making a creature so hideous that even his creator turned from him in disgust.

Shelley's intent here is plain to see. "The fate of the monster suggests that proficiency in `the art of language' as he calls it, may not ensure one's position as a member of the `human kingdom." In a sense, she is showing that both her parents were mistaken when they advocated greater education reform for people. They thought education would make people better, which in turn would improve society for all. Mary Shelley's Frankenstein contradicts this belief.

Starting with the full title of Mary Shelley's book, Frankenstein: or The Modern Prometheus one can instantly see that mythology was integral to her book. Lord Byron, poet and friend of the Shelley's was writing a poem entitled Prometheus, and Mary was reading the Prometheus legend in Aeschylus' works when she had a dream, which was the impetus for her book. The Greek god Prometheus, is known for two important tasks that he performed, he created man from clay, and he stole fire from the gods and gave it to man. The stealing of fire really angered Zeus because the giving of fire began an era of enlightenment for humankind. Zeus punished Prometheus by having him carried to a mountain, where an eagle would pick at his liver; it would grow back each day and the eagle would eat it again
.
The presence of fire and light in this gothic story helps to point to the similarities to Prometheus and Victor Frankenstein, the creator of the monster, in Shelley's book. The book uses light as a symbol of discovery, knowledge, and enlightenment. The natural world is full of hidden passages, and dark unknown scientific secrets; Victor's goal as a scientist is to grasp towards the light. Light is a by-product of fire that the monster learned quickly when he is living on his own. The monster experienced fires' duality when he first encountered it in an unattended fire in the woods. He is mesmerized by the fact that fire produces light in the darkness in the woods, but is shocked at the sensation of pain it gives him when he touches it. Victor is defiant of god in the same way that Prometheus was defiant of Zeus. Victor steals the secret of life from god and creates a human out of spare body parts. He does this out of an altruistic wish to spare humankind from the pain and suffering of death. Thus, Victor Frankenstein embodies both aspects of the Promethean myth creation and fire. Victor in a sense has the same experience with the fire of enlightenment similar to his monster; he is "burned" by the fire of enlightenment. Victor also suffers from the classic Greek tragic condition of hubris for his transgression against god and nature.

The book also adopts two other great mythic legends. One is Adam from the Bible. Victor Frankenstein bears striking resemblance to Adam and his fall from grace for eating the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge. The other is Satan, a mythic figure that Shelley admired from her readings in Milton's book Paradise Lost. In an interesting juxtaposition of booth myths, she expands on the motif of the fall from grace in her book when she portrays the monster comparing himself to Adam; after he read, Milton's book Paradise Lost. The monster tells Victor, that he at first identifies with Adam God's first creation. "I was apparently united by no link to any other being in existence." However, after several incidents of mistreatment that he suffered from the humans he encountered in his travels; the monster soon realized that it is not Adam, the perfect being enjoying the world, which he was most alike. Instead, he came to realize that he most represented Satan. The monster's feelings of hatred and despair stem from the fact that humans found him grotesque to look at and would not accept him as a member of human society. The monster cursed Victor for making a creature so hideous that even his creator turned from him in disgust. Thus, it is obvious for all to see that Shelley's Frankenstein is replete with mythological references and they are central to the plot.

This was required reading for a graduate course in the Humanities. Recommended reading for anyone interested in history, psychology, philosophy, and literature.

After 200 years, Shelley's still got it! .......2006-12-12

If you haven't seen gimmicky Frankenstein paraphanelia strewn about every grocery store in sight then you've been living under a rock. Nearly everyone living in the western world is familiar with this story, at least in a Halloween movie, lame costume sort of way. Yet behind the commercial gimmicks is a genuinely human and insightful story. Ever since I've read the book(and I've read it several times) Frankenstein has kept its spot one of my favorite books of all time.

In case you've been living under a rock: a gifted Swiss doctor named Victor Frankenstein creates a creature from corpses, hoping to prove that he can give life to dead matter. He succeeds in giving it the spark of life but is horrified when the thing(which is never named), awakes and reaches out for him like a child reaching out for its father. Frankenstein abandons the creature and flees, leaving the creature to its own devices. The resulting storyline follows the creature's desire for revenge on his creator, and Frankenstein's attempts to atone for what he's done. The creature, ridiculed for its horrific appearance, exacts revenge by slowly murdering those that Frankenstein holds dear.

I started Frankenstein expecting a difficult read and was surprised by the ease of the passages. For a book written almost two hundred years ago this book is surprisingly easy to understand for the modern reader. Like Dumas's writing, the focus is on the admittedly awesome story, not the intricacies of the writing itself(though these are definitely there, they flow into your mind at an almost subconscious level).

The sheer breadth of the issues it brings up merit reading it. Issues surrounding human hubris, the role of man as creator, and the appropriateness of man using science to play as God. That's only a short list. But thought-provoking themes aside, this is a good book. The strength of Shelley's prose lies in her characterization of the monster; though you see the havoc it wreaks, you cannot help but feel a sort of aching pity for the thing. She presents the struggle between Frankenstein and his creation as a genuine moral dilemma, handling each side with genuine sympathy. If you get this book, I hope you'll like it as much as I have.

Average customer rating:

Frankenstein is timeless.
Greatest Story Ever Told
Dr. Victor Frankenstein sets out to play GOD; and having played with such presumptive fire, gets burned.
Wrong text (1831 rather than 1818)
One of the greatest stories ever told

Frankenstein (Penguin Classics)
Mary Shelley
Manufacturer: Penguin Classics
ProductGroup: Book
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ASIN: 0141439475
Release Date: 2003-05-06

Book Description

Edited by Maurice Hindle.

Customer Reviews:

Frankenstein is timeless........2007-08-15

For those who only think of movie images when they recall Frankenstein, this book will serve as a pleasant and refreshing experience. The gothic undertones lend authenticity to this beautiful story. When I first began to read this book, I was expecting horror and terrifying elements that may have inspired authors like Stephen King. However, I was amazed at just how beautifully deep and inspiring the book actually was.

There is no need for me to rehash the plot because others who have reviewed have done this, but they failed to mention just how many levels there are to this book. The whole story is based on relationships; those between creator and creature, man and nature, science and morality, familial relationships, etc. It is full of concepts such as existentialism, religion, philosophy, family, society (and the shallow, narrow-mindedness of society), and so on. For such a short work, it really covers a large range of human experience.

This is probably my favorite book. It left me feeling hopeful and inspired and I recommend it to just about anyone.

Greatest Story Ever Told.......2007-06-19

Sorry to you religious types, but this novel describes the human condition more powerfully than any "spiritual" tome. To say that it is about responsibility, scientific as well as parental, would be true but also misleading as to the true depth of the work. Like some greek tragedy, there are no truly evil characters in this story. Both Victor Frankenstein and his creation are the victims of their own personalities. Destiny or psychology? Ponder the creature's emotionally wrought story well, for it describes perfectly the psychology of a terrorist who is a human being with family, not some inhuman monster, who strikes out at those he perceives as uncaring to his real or imagined wrongs suffered at the hands of others. Many forget that this was a horror story. Though the creature started out innocent, in the last third of the novel it has matured into a destructive force. And what a force! It haunts Frankenstein like some demonic monkey on his back, stalking him and killing his loved ones while Frankenstein is unable to expose him to the world without admitting his complicity in the creature's existence, even if he were to be believed. At one point, he ends up in an insane asylum. The novel starts with Frankenstein's obsession to create life, and ends with his obsession to destroy what he has created. A timeless portrait of the human condition in all its wretchedness.

Dr. Victor Frankenstein sets out to play GOD; and having played with such presumptive fire, gets burned........2007-05-04

Let us compare two perspectives from which to 'see' this work by Mary Shelley---through the eyes of Victor Frankenstein's or through the eyes of that doctor's creation. Let's begin with the latter; and in the words (yes, 'he' speaks in the book) of that creature/daemon/monster/being: "I must not be trifled with, and I demand an answer. If I have no ties and no affections, hatred and vice must be my portion; the love of another will destroy the cause of my crimes, and I shall become a thing of whose existance every one will be ignorant. My vices are the children of a forced solitude that I abhor, and my virtues will necessarily arise when I live in communion with an equal. I shall feel the affections of a sensitive being and become linked to the chain of existence and events from which I am now excluded."

But, alas, it was not to be for Dr. Frankenstein's bodily creation, as 'he' admits to "...daily vows [which] rose for revenge---a deep and deadly revenge, such as would alone compensate for the outrages and anguish I had endured.""Inflamed by pain, I vowed eternal hatred and vengeance to all mankind."

"Once my fancy was soothed with dreams of virtue, of fame, and of enjoyment. Once I falsely hoped to meet with beings who, pardoning my outward form, would love me for the excellent qualities which I was capable of unfolding." "...I desired love and friendship, and I was still spurned. Was there no injustice in this?" "But it is true that I am a wretch. I have murdered the lovely and the helpless; I have strangled the innocent as they slept and grasped to death his throat who never injured me or any other living thing." "Am I to be thought the only criminal , when all humankind sinned against me?" And, akin to that berzerk kid in Virginia who went on a killing spree (in April of 2007) Shelley puts in the mouth of Frankenstein's creation the same words that that kid utilized after the fact: "You made this happen."

(Dr. Frankenstein's creation speaks well, does he not? Get a load of this sentence from the Doctor's creation, as the creation, in his own words, describes his seeing a young girl carrying a pail thusly: "As she walked along, seemingly incommoded by the burden, a young man met her, whose counternance expressed a deeper despondence.")

Then we have the sympathetic Dr. Victor Frankenstein:"I had often, when at home, thought it hard to remain during my youth cooped up in one place and had longed to enter the world and take my station among other human beings." Actually, to be frank (pardon the pun), we not only have Victor and his creation's viewpoints, but Victor's viewpoint of the 1818 edition of this book and the 1831 revised (by Mary Shelley herself) edition. Likewise the Doctor's creation changes in some respects between editions. So we have 4 varying perspectives through which to view this novel, you could argue. While there were many stylistic changes made (I consulted the 1818 text---Frankenstein (Oxford World's Classics)---to see for myself what the differences were, just for curiosity), more substantive changes were also made, as well (substantial enough to give us another two takes on our pair of major characters). So, what were the changes? Well, for the 1831 version, Dr. Frankenstein's character was made more sympathetic, "who is partly absolved from blame for his early errors" (Appendix Oxford 1818 version). In addition, Dr. "Frankenstein's character is now built up as admirable" (Oxford again). And Dr. Frankenstein is given lines about 'the guardian angel of my life,' as well as referring to his soul. And, finally, Victor's love interest is made a non-relation in the 1831 version while the women in question in the 1818 version is his consistently identified and referred to as his (first) cousin. So, one could argue that Dr. Frankenstein was tempting fate in the 1818 version---the love interest with a first cousin and his being a scientist without an overly religious consciousness trying to replicate life; ie., attempting to play God---while in the 1831 version we get a far more sympathetic characterization of the Doctor: "I had begun life with benevolent intentions and thristed for the moment when I should put them in practice and make myself useful to my fellow beings." Who can really say why Mary Shelley made these changes, but It seems hard not to credit some of the tragedies which befell her in the interim. The 1818 novel was written by a daughter whose parents "had been heavily influenced by the ideals of the French Revolution," and her father, to boot, was a radical of the anarchist Left; "an ex-Dissenting minister turned atheist..." While the 1831 version, one could conjecture, was influenced by these tragedies: the suicide of her husband's first wife (after Mary had stolen away with the then already married man), the death of 2 (of her 3) children, and the drowning of her husband. (The latter---the Oxford edition introduction notes---put her in a more precarious financial situation (not completely relieved until her father's passing in 1844.)

So, where does that leave us? Which version should one read? Well, that's your call. Both versions convey, in Mary Shelley's own words, how "Frightful must it be; for supremely frightful would be the effect of any human endeavor to mock the stupendous mechanism of the Creator of the world." But at the same time, both versions pretty much make Dr. Frankenstein's artificial creation sympathetic too. The two versions just reorder the stress between these two notions; the 1818 version (See Frankenstein (Norton Critical Editions)) leaning more heavily on the former (but nowhere nearly so as does the James Whale classic Frankenstein film---Boris Karloff's Frankenstein - The Legacy Collection (Frankenstein / Bride of / Son of / Ghost of / House of); wherein the creature is not portrayed as sympathetic and Victor is portrayed as a 'Mad' scientist), and the 1831 version being more of a fudge. (07May) Cheers

Wrong text (1831 rather than 1818).......2007-05-03

This particular edition uses the wrong text -- the bowdlerized 1831 text,rather than the original 1818 text. Most Frankenstein editions do in fact use the 1831 text, which was the only one available for 143 years. Then in 1974 James Rieger, in his _Frankenstein or, The Modern Prometheus: The 1818 Text_ (Chicago), compellingly made the case that the 1818 text is superior, in terms of both ideas and language. Almost all scholars of English Romanticism were convinced by Rieger, and now prefer the 1818 text.

Frankenstein really is a great work, containing profound symbolism, disturbing ideas, unforgettable images, and some of the most beautiful prose in the English language. However, to appreciate these fully, it's necessary to have the best text. Fortunately, several editions of the 1818 Frankenstein are now available, edited by J. Paul Hunter (Norton), James Rieger (Chicago), Susan J. Wolfson (Longman), and D.L. Macdonald & Kathleen Scherf (Broadview).

The masterpiece, Frankenstein, was really written by Percy Bysshe Shelley, one of the greatest poets in the English language. For this case, check out my own book, The Man Who Wrote Frankenstein.

I would give Frankenstein five stars, but this edition merits only one.

One of the greatest stories ever told.......2007-02-28

The Munsters: A Trip Down Mockingbird Lane

Average customer rating:

Wonderfully Detailed Tribute To Television's First Family Of Fright
The Munsters A Trip Down Mockingbird Lane
A Book with Bite!!!
I Still Don't Believe Butch Patrick was Born in 1953
The Munsters: A Trip Down Mockingbird Lane

The Munsters: A Trip Down Mockingbird Lane
Stephen Cox
Manufacturer: Back Stage Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0823078949

Book Description

* Hundreds of rare photos from the Universal archives
* Interviews with cast and crew, packed with insider anecdotes
* Introduction by Lily Munster herself, Yvonne de Carlo!

If you recognize the famous Mockingbird Heights address, you probably grew up in the 1960s and never missed a chance to see the Munsters, the working stiffs (get it?) of ghouls. Now it's time to rediscover Herman and Lily, Grandpa, Eddie, and Marilyn (the "ugly one") in this entertaining, comprehensive look at the first family of fright. A complete episode guide makes The Munsters the must-have companion to watching the series on DVD or cable, while hundreds of rare photographs from the archives of Universal Studios plus interviews with cast and crew reveal the deepest, darkest secrets of the Munster family. This completely revised and updated edition of a hotly collected book lets all of us pay one more visit to a cult classic!

Customer Reviews:

Wonderfully Detailed Tribute To Television's First Family Of Fright.......2007-07-08

Having recently acquired this wonderful book by author Stephen Cox titled "The Munsters: A Trip Down Mockingbird Lane", as well as the recently released Two Seasons of the classic series on DVD, I once again never fail to marvel at this brilliant and totally original series that ran from 1964-66. Part domestic sitcom, part tribute to the Universal Monsters of old, and part satire on the "then", state of society as we perhaps knew it, "The Munsters" were really one of a kind, a sort of ghoul's version of "Father Knows Best". Produced in what I still firmly believe was the most creative decade on television, the swinging 1960's, "The Munsters", entry into the television schedule was perfectly timed and this most unusual of families slotted right in with the fantastic and totally "out of this world", programming of the time that featured beautiful suburban witches, talking horses, multi-millionaire hillbillies, bumbling spies, and sexy Genies.

Stephen Cox's loving tribute to this classic series makes first rate reading, chock full of terrific and highly informative information and dozens of truly stunning photos never before seen that will delight the heart of any reader. It truly is essential in the book collection of any devoted "Munster", fan like myself. In a similiar vein to his other writing efforts that explored such much loved series from the 1960's as "The Beverly Hillbillies", and "Green Acres", Mr. Cox here explores everything to do with the show in a easily read format. Everything "Munster" is here from the original ideas that formed the basis for the eventual series, to information on the series' incredible cast and production crew, to a detailed look at the show's lavish attention to detail in terms of sets, costumes and makeup. Discussion is also given by Mr. Cox on the still mysterious reasons for the show's cancellation after only two years and then examines the amazing after life of "The Munsters", that continues on as strong as ever after 40 years when many of the more "realistic", sitcoms that replaced it are now only hazy memories. In short it's the perfect book for "Munster", lovers and anyone who has a real interest in how television was produced in that golden decade of the 1960's.

The Munsters A Trip Down Mockingbird Lane.......2007-06-02

This was a terrific book and provided detailed information about the show that took a lot of research. It was equally as entertaining. I would highly recommend that Munster fans (young and old). Illustrations are wonderful.

A Book with Bite!!!.......2007-05-14

WOW, what an incredible book. This is just everything you need and want to know about the Munsters TV show. It has it all and doesn't skip a beat. The things you will learn about the tv show is just awesome. Wanna know about the makeup? It's there. Wanna know about the cars? It's there. What the cast has and is doing? It's there. Get the point.

Let me also say what a fabulous job of how the book was designed. Color photos and behind the scene shots thru out the book. These are just some of the most spectacular photos on the tv show I have seen. Nice Rare stuff. You will love it.

What a remarkable update to Mr. Cox original book. This is definately a whole new book. Get one before you can never find one like this again.

I Still Don't Believe Butch Patrick was Born in 1953.......2007-03-06

A TRIP DOWN MOCKINGBIRD LANE is exactly that: a compilation of recollections from cast and crew that more or less leave a good feeling about the show and is akin to an album a family might collect in time for a reunion. There are no major revelations in this publication; stories are repeated throughout and must be fan favorites that folks enjoy being told again and again.

There are hints about Patrick Lily (better known as Butch Patrick) and his behavior on the set. There is mention of Fred and Al's constant bickering with the powers-that-were, but nothing concrete. Someday I would like to read a biography that would focus on Patrick's experience as a child actor. I do not believe he was born in 1953, he looks nine (at oldest) when the show first premiers. I think his age was lied about so he could get into makeup and be on the set longer than a younger child would have been allowed (I surmise this because he still looks no older than 12 in 1968 when he does "The Phantom Tollbooth"). Although I love "The Munsters" television series, and generally believe a good experience was had by all, I would be interested in reading Lily's story; I think we would find that his grandmother used acting as some use modern-day foster care.

As for this work, it is rare that a television series receive such a loving treatment: the color photos are vivid, the black and whites are brillaint, there are several trivia features that are fun, but would not have been thought of by a lesser biographer. It is a terrific keepsake for Munsters' fans and television adhearants in general.

The Munsters: A Trip Down Mockingbird Lane.......2007-01-29

Awesome, detailed book. Easy, flowing reading that you can't put down! What an insight inot the production and cast members of this classic show.

The Frankenstein Notebooks: A Facsimile Edition of Mary Shelley's Manuscript Novel, 1816-17 (Manuscripts of the Younger Romantics)

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The Frankenstein Notebooks: A Facsimile Edition of Mary Shelley's Manuscript Novel, 1816-17 (Manuscripts of the Younger Romantics)
Mary Wo Shelley
Manufacturer: Routledge
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0815316089

Sherlock Holmes: The Adventure of the Frankenstein Monster

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Very disappointing
Sherlock Holmes: The Adventure of the Frankenstein Monster
Proofreader's Nightmare
Never mess with the ending of a great novel!
Nice way of retelling the Frankenstein story.

Sherlock Holmes: The Adventure of the Frankenstein Monster
Don W. Baranowski
Manufacturer: Infinity Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0741436981
Release Date: 2006-12-08

Product Description

Victor Frankenstein creates life from the dead, alone, in his Geneva laboratory. His friend, Clerval, becomes concerned for Victor's health when he is suddenly missing and travels to London, England to consult 'privately' with old school mate, Dr. John Watson. Hearing a strange lie about events told to Watson, Sherlock Holmes takes it upon himself to delve into the strange particulars of the matter. Holmes, Watson and Frankenstein embark on a fantastic journey across the frozen wastelands of icy terror and helplessly observe as all around them meet their most gruesome death at the hands of the Frankenstein Monster.

Customer Reviews:

Very disappointing.......2007-06-26

I purchased this book with great anticipation, but even the introduction was disappointing. Purporting to be yet another lost Watson manuscript, the framing story is that Watson sent the tale of Holmes' adventure to his former girlfriend, Mary Shelley (nee Godwin), and that was the basis for her book. Mary Shelley was born in 1797, published "Frankenstein" in 1818, and died in 1851. The first Sherlock Holmes story was published in 1887, and Watson is portrayed as in his (early?) thirties at the time. Rather precocious, wouldn't you say, to be seeing a woman who died before he was born?

Always willing to reject reality in favor of a good story, I began reading. This author (or publisher) is in dire need of a copy editor and proofreader (and a few lessons in basic grammar). There is constant substitution of "it's" for "its", "bare" for "bear", and at least one instance of "foreward" for "forward". There are a number of punctuation errors. The narration changes tense at least twice, and there are several scenes described in detail by Watson at which he was not present. Castle Frankenstein seems to move back and forth between England and Switzerland, and evidently the Baron has also invented time travel, since the day after Victor's wedding (in Geneva), he and his entourage are in England.

I'm sorry, Mr. Baranowski, but I see this as a total waste of $12.95 and two hours of my life.

Sherlock Holmes: The Adventure of the Frankenstein Monster.......2007-06-07

Definitely well written, worth reading. I bought a total of 3 copies and gave 2 as gifts.

Proofreader's Nightmare.......2007-04-13

I was really looking forward to this book. I've read the Sherlock Holmes Canon and countless pastiches. I read Frankenstein when I was much younger and am a devoted fan of the Universal horror movies. Unfortunately, this book is proof that the whole can be much less than the sum of the parts, The writing style is all over the place: alternately hackneyed, stilted, or over the top. Words are used incorrectly, and I have never seen so many fragments used in lieu of sentences. Sir Arthur would cringe. Holmes is a dolt in this book: As Raven indicates in his review, Baranowski's Holmes doesn't seem able to guess future events which are foreshadowed with all the subtlety of a rampaging bull. The dialogue does not evoke the period, but what is most unforgiveable is that the story adds nothing to the original. Perhaps my disappointment was so profound because my expectations were so high. I am stunned at the charitable reviews this book received from the other reviewers because I found this book a painful waste of time.

Never mess with the ending of a great novel!.......2007-03-22

This was an enjoyable book to read, once past the odious "How I Found This Manuscript" pages. I could almost tell what they are going to be before I open one of these books. The story takes off with a bang, and there is almost no point of pause from the start to the finish. I read the book in one sitting, and it kept my interest the whole way.

There were two potential week points concerning Holmes' detection, which if the author doesn't mind, I will point out. I cannot see Holmes failing to foresee, given the formability of the monster and how it kept its word, that Elizabeth would not be in danger of death and leave her unguarded. Two, I do not see Holmes selling Frankenstein so short on his fanaticism, as to allow him to stock the laboratory for the creation of the monster's mate and not foresee that he would move quickly to finish the work. If Mr. Baranowski reprints the book, he might want to reconsider.

My real ding though, is changing the end of the story from the way it ends in Mary Shelly's account. Some things about the classics are best left classic. However, it's an excellent tale. Quoth the Raven...

Nice way of retelling the Frankenstein story........2007-03-05

I cannot remember all the details of the Frankenstein story, however I felt this retelling through the eyes of Dr. John Watson was pretty good. To believe Watson it was he who related the story to one of his lady friends after which she married a poet and retold the tale years later. There did seem to be some reliance on the Frankenstein films however we have an articulate Boris Karloff as "the creature". It is chilling to read, no pun intended as some of the story takes place in the frozen wastelands. Again I have to review the original telling as I was puzzled at how easily Holmes and Watson got back and forth between London and the original Frankenstein locations.

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