Why this book?
Although often lauded as one of the great gothic and/or horror novels, Frankenstein can also lay claim to being one of the first—if not the first—true works of science fiction. The monster of the novel (not Frankenstein, by the way, that was the name of the doctor who created him) is not a creature of magic or fantasy. He is the result of a series of scientific experiments that take place in a lab, brought to life by a jolt of electricity. What is that if not a glimpse, however darkly, into the future? The cell that became Dolly the sheep, the first clone, was brought to life in exactly the same way.
Frankenstein: Or `The Modern Prometheus': The 1818 Text
Why should I read it?
4 authors picked Frankenstein as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.
What is this book about?
By the dim and yellow light of the moon, as it forced its way through the window-shutters, I beheld the wretch-the miserable monster whom I had created. He held up the curtain of the bed; and his eyes, if eyes they may be called, were fixed on me. His jaws opened...
Frankenstein is the most celebrated horror story ever written. It tells the dreadful tale of Victor Frankenstein, a visionary young student of natural philosophy, who discovers the secret of life. In the grip of his obsession he constructs a being from dead body parts, and animates this creature. The…