Tag Archives: frankenstein

April 8, 2019 · 11:10 pm

The Frankenstein Adventures

Adventure retelling of classic horror story

I received a copy of this book courtesy of the author.

“The Frankenstein Adventures” by Bil Richardson is a retelling of Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” to celebrate the 200 year anniversary of its publication. Drawing inspiration from more modern interpretations of the story, Victor Frankenstein is happily married to his wife Elizabeth and is busy trying to create life with his assistant Igor. When he hears that his old school nemesis is working on creating life himself, Victor takes a couple of shortcuts to win the race. However, when things don’t work out to plan, his creation flees and unwittingly kicks off a manhunt across the countryside.

This is a fun- and pun-filled story that takes elements of a classic story in a more modern, action style. Richardson has a clear writing style with a strong focus on dialogue and wordplay. I actually much preferred Richardson’s version of Victor Frankenstein, much more than Shelley’s gnashing mess of a man who, to his own detriment, is completely unable to face his own mistakes. I liked that Victor and Frank reconcile at the end and each acknowledge their own part in the events that played out.

I did feel that the setting of this book was a little confusing. It wasn’t exactly clear exactly where Castle Frankenstein was, but it did seem to be somewhere in America rather than in Europe. I also had some questions about the audience for this book. I understand that Richardson is quite keen to get young boys reading, and while I think that elements of this story will appeal to them, most of the characters are adults and there is a lot of quite gruesome violence. I also found Maria’s story, while synonymous with what happens to William in the original story, to also be quite disturbing and never fully addressed.

An interesting take on a classic story, Richardson’s Frankenstein family is far more emotionally intelligent than the original.

Frankenstein in Baghdad

Modern retelling of Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” set in Iraq

Content warning: war, violence, fake blood

I received an advance reading copy of this book courtesy of Harry Hartog.

“Frankenstein in Baghdad” by Ahmed Saadawi is a horror novel that puts a modern spin on Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” by reimagining the creation of the monster shortly after the US invasion of Iraq. The story is set in a neighbourhood in Baghdad, the capital city of Iraq, where an old woman called Elishva lives alone waiting for her son Daniel (whom everyone, including her daughters, believes is dead) to return home. She has two rather unsavoury neighbours: Faraj and Hadi. Faraj, a real estate agent, hopes to buy Elishva’s large, historical and largely undamaged home. Hadi, a junk dealer, hopes to buy her vast collection of antiques. While waiting for Elishva to finally give up her possessions, Hadi has been engaging in a strange compulsion to collect body parts after the many explosions in Baghdad. When the enormous corpse goes missing, up-and-coming journalist Mahmoud investigates the escalating violence and strange murders that start occurring in the city.

This book started out very intriguingly with a report from a mysterious committee that makes recommendations in relation to the activities of the Tracking and Pursuit Department and the arrest of an author who had prepared a 250 page story. The book then starts from there. Thematically, this was an incredibly interesting story that uses the corpse made up of disparate body parts as a shrewd metaphor for the war in Iraq. Saadawi presents a scathing look at the way war becomes self-sustaining through corruption, greed, revenge and desensitisation. Mahmoud provides an interesting perspective as a character who straddles ethical and unethical journalism. Jonathan Wright’s translation from the Arabic feels smooth and nuanced.

However, I struggled with some parts of this book. There were very few female characters in this novel and the women who were featured seemed to fall within the tropes of crazy cat lady, ice queen and replacement love interest. None of the women have much agency or personality, and even the violence in the streets and due to bombing mostly focuses on men being killed. This is also partly a horror novel, and while the symbolism behind the corpse is very strong, the mechanics of how he gains and sustains life are very disturbing. I think I probably found the chapters with Mahmoud the least engaging. Despite the fact that there was probably a good reason for his story being largely separate from the corpse’s antics in Elishva’s neighbourhood, every time the story returned to him it felt jarring and dull.

Anyway, this isn’t an easy topic or an easy book, but as my ARC wasn’t a complete copy (which I didn’t realise until I reached the end), I was hooked enough to buy an eBook version and finish the last few dozen pages on my eReader. This is my first Iraqi novel, and it was a vivid and visceral insight into the impact of the war on a city.

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Filed under Book Reviews, Horror, Magic Realism

Tagged as ahmed saadawi, book reviews, books, frankenstein, Frankenstein in Baghdad, Horror

May 24, 2016 · 10:59 am

Frankenstein

Every year I make an effort to dedicate some of my reading to classics. Last year I managed to read three: “20 Thousand Leagues Under the Sea”, “The Picture of Dorian Gray” and “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes”. One of the great things about classic books is that because their copyright has usually long since expired, publishers are always competing with each other and coming up with gorgeous, eye-catching editions and sets. I came across this super cool edition of “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley at Harry Hartog’s, and it’s so kitsch and ridiculous with its bright blue page edges and the Monster in a leather jacket on the front, I had to have it.

Mary Shelley is often considered to be the mother of science fiction. First published in 1818, “Frankenstein” is an account of a fervent young scientist of the same name who discovers the secret to creating life. Using the macabre technique of digging up bodies from a graveyard, Frankenstein builds an enormous man from the parts and brings him to life. Showing exactly the lack of foresight, responsibility and common sense that becomes characteristic of Frankenstein throughout the book, he is struck with horror at his actions and abandons his new creation. The Monster is left to fend for himself, and without guidance or love, the results are catastrophic – especially for Frankenstein.

This book is really two stories: the story of Frankenstein, and the story of the Monster. Frankenstein as a character is completely insufferable. When he’s not energetically digging up corpses, he’s extremely fragile and histrionic, and spends a great deal of the book in an absolutely pathetic state be it fainting, spasming or gnashing his teeth. Frankenstein has no character development whatsoever, and even when he’s given an opportunity to make amends, he just reverts back to his own hysterical self and once again completely fails to clean up his own mess. Every time I read the parts of the book from Frankenstein’s point of view, I found myself groaning and rolling my eyes.

The Monster, however, is extremely interesting. Shelley does a fantastic job of getting the reader to sympathise with the brutal yet sensitive Monster. The Monster undergoes an extreme amount of character development, and the chapters from his point of view are both compelling and touching.

I found “Frankenstein” to be a slow read, over all. It’s interesting, and certainly was groundbreaking in terms of exploring life, nature v nurture and identity, but it drags on. I’m glad I read it, but I don’t think I’ll need to read it again.

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Filed under Book Reviews, Classics, Pulp! The Classics, Science Fiction, Uncategorized

Tagged as book reviews, books, frankenstein, mary shelley, tinted edges