Bijou's Full Review: Bram Stoker - The New Annotated Dracula
Although most people may be surprised that I asked (well, begged) my husband for this awesome book for a Mother's Day gift, he was not. My husband knows my passion for vampire myths and lore, and I was in the middle of teaching Dracula to my junior English class. I discovered this amazing text in my local library and immediately fell in love! It's a fantastic addition to any vampire lover's library.
Published in October 2008, The New Annotated Dracula features a thoughtful foreward by Neil Gaiman, author of Stardust and Coraline. There is a wealth of annotation in the margins about the Victorian Era, feminist criticism, psychoanalytic commentary--I'll admit, I am quite addicted to perusing the annotations as I am reading the text. Because of the scope of information compiled by editor Les Klinger (who also annotated The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes), I have been referring to The New Annotated Dracula as my magical tome of wonder. It features so much interesting information about the book that I love to read and teach.
What really inspires me, though, are the new critical approaches to this famous text. For example, critic Clive Leatherdale posits that the character, Quincey Morris, is not the hero of the story--but may, in fact, be in league with Dracula! The evidence presented in the text explores this tantalizing idea and presents the hero (Morris is instrumental in causing Dracula's death) as a double agent. Morris' fidelity to his "posse" was something I never questioned as a reader; I appreciate a book that delves into areas I had never investigated, like Morris' motivations, or inconsistent dates in the text. There is much to learn by exploring these insightful annotations.
Dracula is a story, while originally published in 1897, that remains familiar to a contemporary audience, and The New Annotated Dracula offers unique perspectives about this famous tale. Featuring notes from author Bram Stoker, comments from literary critics, and fascinating information about the Victorian period, the annotations are a treasure trove of knowledge to navigate! There are maps, dates, pictures, and facts about the setting and story that I've been able to use with my students, such as illustrations of the main character, Dracula, and maps of Victorian London. I really like the assortment of Dracula imagery scattered throughout the text--film stills, comics, and etchings adorn various pages. In the introduction, Gaiman comments, "Dracula is a book that cries out for annotation." I have to agree! This text is an amazing resource for anyone who appreciates the depth of this vampire tale and its iconic main character, Count Dracula.
Part II of the text, entitled "Considering the Count," features five critical essays--my favorite is "Sex, Lies, and Blood: Dracula in Academia." There are four appendices, one of which is "Dracula's Guest," which was the short story Stoker composed that later morphed into his novel. At over 600 pages, this is not a book to speed read! It is a gem that has enhanced my teaching and my love for Stoker's fiction.
The New Annotated Dracula will be a great addition to your horror fiction library. The hardcover book has a list price of $39.95; my husband purchased it for $28.76 because he is a member of Barnes and Noble. Skip the young adult vampire fiction and go directly to its predecessor: The New Annotated Dracula.
The bestselling author of The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes returns with this spectacular, lavishly illustrated homage to Bram Stoker s Dracula. 35 co...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
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