Nineteen Eighty-Four, by George Orwell

Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley

Revival, by Steven King

Soon to start Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley

Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley

It’s been a little while since I sat down and read a novel, so I’m hoping to get back into it by reading a book I’ve started and put down multiple times.

Finished: Mother Night, by Kurt Vonnegut and Coming Up For Air, by George Orwell

Starting: Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley

Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley

I’m reading the 1831 revision of the book. This is my first time ever reading the story of Frankenstein. I’ve never read the book nor have I ever seen any adaptation (Young Frankenstein doesn’t count). I’m now 77% done reading it, and I should be finished up after I get home from work tonight.

I’ve grown up (I’m 48) knowing what Frankenstein is supposed to be about. I know Shelley is said to have written this after having a dream. I know that the Boris Karloff movie is supposed to be a classic. I know it’s supposed to be about science run amuck.

What’s surprising me is the style of the book, and the story itself isn’t anything like I expected.

I started this thanks to Aaron Mahnke’s free audio book from Apple Books. I downloaded a copy of the book to my Kindle to read along with the narration, figured out there’s a difference between the 1818 original and the 1831 revision, and now I’m trying to finish the book as quickly as I can so I’ve ditched the audio (no fault of Mahnke, I can just read faster than I can listen).

At the moment I am reading Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley. I am only about 50 pages in but I like it so far.

A classic - I've bought Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley for a quarter in a garage sale. I'm going to devour it, I'm already halfway there. It's very, very different from what I expected from pop culture (I haven't seen any of the movies either)

Finished Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley. A quick read, and a classic "what makes a human human" book.

Started Guns, Germs and Steel, by Jared Diamond. It's a lot more scientific than I expected.

Finished:

Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley I enjoyed the language and the descriptions of Geneva. Surprisingly the plot and issues with the creature are pretty much identical to the ones you would see in a modern science fiction novel about AI. To be honest I didnt really knew the story before so I kinda expected angry villagers with pitchforks.

Started: The thousand autumns of Jacob de Zoet, by David Mitchell I'm only about 100 pages in but enjoy it so far. There is a lot of culture clash and value dissonance between the natives and the european colonizers which is really cool. I also study History which might improve my opinion on the book.

Have almost finished Into the Water, by Paula Hawkins. It's an ok mystery. I'm seeing a pattern with her characters having read Girl on the train a few years back as well. She likes writing female characters that are broken as the result of having been treated badly by men. Nothing wrong with that but it did make the mystery a bit predictable for me.

Next I'm going to read Frankenstein, by Mary Shelly. I have the version that Guillermo del Toro edited as part of a six-volume series of the best in classic horror.

Currently nearing the end if My Sister's keeper by Jodi Picoult. Simple book, but tearing me up little by little.

I'm about a third of the way through The Divine Comedy Part 1: Hell translated by Dorothy Sayers

And plan to start Frankenstein by Mary Shelley in a few days in honor of halloween.

Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley - Initially it took a while to get used to the long-winded writing style typical of the Romantic period, but once the story gets going... it's amazing. If your only familiarity with this is in the various movie depictions, this is drastically different, and is mostly focused on the conflict between a creator and his path that led him to creating a monster, and his flawed creation who feel's forsaken by all. We're presented with both their points of views in their all-encompassing struggle. There's a reason this is a classic.

Ask the Dust, by John Fante - This oddly felt more dated, and a product of its time than Frankenstein. I thought the best part of the book was in its portrayal of depression-era Los Angeles, and what the people and the environment of the time was like. It can feel very stream-of-thought-like at times, to the point where an earthquake sequence felt ambiguous in whether it was real, or just reflecting his mind process. The main character's sexist, annoying persona is going to feel a bit grating, but you can argue, he's just really trying to get you to feel the mindset of an unsavory character like that.

You Get So Alone At Times That It Just Makes Sense, by Charles Bukowski - Wonderful introduction to Bukowski. I'm glad I read this now, instead of in my twenties, as I would've probably identified too much with that world-view. Easily readable and very emotionally engaging. If I was introducing someone to poetry, he's probably someone I'd recommend starting with.

I'm getting back into reading after roughly half my life of not reading, so here goes. Let's hope this remains to be an avid hobby of mine this time.

Started:

War and Peace, by Leo Tolstoy, translated by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky

Remarks: I have yet to read much, but, from the bit I have read, am extremely pleased to start this book and glad that I bought this translation. I do not speak, nor understand, any French so the footnotes come in very handy.

The Iliad, by Homer

Remarks: Also not very far in the book, but I plan on conquering this and The Odyssey before the end of the school year. It is a very slow start, but one I can easily deal with.

Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley

Remarks: Assigned to me for my AP Literature class, this book has been a simple reread for me so far. Equally as gripping and thrilling as I recall, but the cases of foreshadowing are glaringly obvious. I'm enjoying it much more this time around as I know what comes next.

A Journey to the Centre of the Earth, by Jules Verne

Remarks: Rereading this for fun and as a little refresher on the world of literature. Refreshing, short, and gripping. Highly recommend for a short read.

Finished Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. Rightfully famous because it's just a fantastic example of a great story with interesting characters. Read some critical responses to the book and someone brought up the interesting point of how Mary Shelley wrote a book with such passive feminine characters, but her mother is Mary Wollstonecraft.

Next on the list is Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe, really looking forward to this one.

Frankenstein, by Mary shelley

I have always heard about this book, but it is different from what i imagined.

Finished Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley and started a galley of Black Death at the Golden Gate, by David K. Randall, which comes out in May.

Finished rereading Frankenstein, by Mary W. Shelley - still one of my favourites after all these years.

Currently cracking the spine of some random Sherlock Holmes Anthology (seems to include a selection across Adventures and Memoir).

I finished reading Frankenstein by Mary Shelly. I'm currently reading The Glass Bead Game by Hermann Hesse.