Product Description
Mathilda is presented here in a high quality paperback edition. This popular classic work by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley is in the English language. If you enjoy the works of Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley then we highly recommend this publication for your book collection. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

excellent novel
Mathilda by Mary Shelley

This is a quality product. Very nice Kindle ebook.

A mortal passion
Mary Shelley's story has been suppressed for over a century, because it treats a taboo subject: incest.

When Mathilda is being courted by a young man her father becomes violently jealous. He can't control his overwhelming passion -'My daughter,I love you' - and flees.
From being her God, her father becomes Matilda's nightmare: 'infamy and guilt was mingled with my portion; unlawful and detestable passion has poured its poison into my ears and changed all my blood (in) a cold fountain of bitterness.'
The lovers are doomed for the attraction is stronger than life: 'I am in love with death; no maiden ever took more pleasure in the contemplation of her bridal attirement than I in fancying my limbs already enwrapped in their shroud: is it not my married dress? Alone it will unite me to my father when in an eternal union we shall never part.'

Although sometimes too sentimental, 'Matilda' is a strong psychological portrait, brilliantly written by an intelligentand very well read author: 'more lovely than a sunbeam, slighter, quicker than the waving plumage of a bird, dazzling as lightning and like it giving day to night,yet mild and faint, that smile came.'

The story treats an important human conflict, partly resolved by evolution (C. Lumsden, E.O.Wilson - Promethean Fire).

Highly recommended. ... Read more

Product Description
Frankenstein (also titled The Modern Prometheus but now generally referred to as Frankenstein), was written by Mary Shelley and first published anonymously in 1818. The title makes reference to one of the novel's main characters, a scientist named Victor Frankenstein, who learns how to create life. The monster itself has mistakenly been referred to as "Frankenstein", after its creator. The being Frankenstein creates is formed from pieces of buried remains that are brought to life with a spark of electricity. Intended to be made in the image of man, the being turns out to be larger than average and more powerful. The saga becomes increasingly frightening as man loses control over beast. The story has become a classic and stands as a leader in the horror genre. This publication of Frankenstein is part of the Qualitas Classics Fireside Series, where pure, ageless classics are presented in clean, easy to read reprints. For a complete list of titles, see:http://www.qualitaspublishing.comAmazon.com Review
Frankenstein, loved by many decades of readers andpraised by such eminent literary critics as Harold Bloom,seems hardly to need a recommendation. If you haven't read itrecently, though, you may not remember the sweeping force of theprose, the grotesque, surreal imagery, and the multilayereddoppelgänger themes of Mary Shelley's masterpiece.Asfantasy writer JaneYolen writes of this (the reviewer's favorite) edition, "Thestrong black and whites of the main text [illustrations] are dark andbrooding, with unremitting shadows and stark contrasts. But thecentral conversation with the monster--who owes nothing to theoverused movie image … but is rather the novel's charnel-housecomposite--is where [Barry] Moser's illustrations show their greatestpower ... The viewer can all but smell the powerful stench of themonster's breath as its words spill out across the page. Strongbook-making for one of the world's strongest and most remarkablebooks." Includes an illuminating afterword by Joyce CarolOates. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (525)

Review of Audio Drama of Frankenstein
This audio drama version of the Frankenstein story is very good.The adaptation and acting are very good.It conveys a sense of the original story in two hours of listening.
Note: this is the original Mary Shelly story, not the simplistic Hollywood movie version.

Frankenstein embodies romantic ideals of self-discovery, mystical nature, and a quest for the sublime
Many of the main ideas of Romanticism are seen in Mary Shelley's book Frankenstein. The romantic period is characterized by a movement and departure away from scientific and rational ideas, in literature, ideology, and art. The artwork from the romantic era strove to capture and represent the sublime, the experience of nature, and the personalization of these experiences. This particular work of Mary Shelley is a story that is not from her own personal experience nor written in her own voice. This work is about a quest to achieve the sublime. Through the use of emotionally stirring words and a creative, gothic mood, Mary Shelley creates a romantic piece of artwork that drives one towards personal discovery and romantic ideology. Frankenstein is about Dr. Victor Frankenstein's quest to create a living being out of raw materials in his laboratory. With an emphasis on a "new way of seeing things", Dr. Victor Frankenstein applied imagination and creative thinking in order to better understand the world, perfect the vision of human beings, and better characterize the society in which we live. Being the dreamer, who is preoccupied by the sublime, suggest Dr. Victor Frankenstein and this novel, as a wonderful romantic work.

Help
The school is using the book and my grand Daughter was happy to get it so fast Thanks

teacher
Thank you for your prompt service with the merchandise. I appreciate it greatly and it was in proven condition. Thanks!

Who's the Monster?
A surprise to me - Frankenstein is the name of the creator of the monster, not the monster itself.

The book is not only a cautionary tale; it also addresses responsibility and the pathos of loneliness.It is a good selection for Book Clubs as the topics are stimulating
discussion items.
... Read more

Product Description
A futuristic story of tragic love and of the gradual extermination of the human race by plague. With portraits of Percy Shelley and Byron, it expresses a reaction against their brand of Romanticism by demonstrating the failure of art and imagination to save the human race. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (15)

The Last Man - A Futuristic Apocalyptic Vision
Many readers of Frankenstein are not aware that Mary Shelley wrote other novels. The Last Man is the first novel written about an apocalyptic future. In The Last Man, which takes place is the year 2073, everyone has died of a plague, resulting from a deadly gas released during a war, expect for one man, who is the narrator of the story.

The plague first strikes in Africa and other countries other than England, where most of the novel takes place and the main characters live. The people of England believe they are immune and develop a fear of foreigners and outsiders; anyone who is different. This theme resonates today in the age of AIDS, a disease that has the potential to kill many people. AIDS, similar to the plague in the novel, affects certain group more than others, and creates fear and hatred of different cultural and racial groups. In writing this novel, it seems as if Mary Shelley had a prophetic vision of what may hold true for the future of humanity.

Tedious
This work by Frankenstein's author was accepted poorly when it first came out (1826), then remained out of print for over 130 years. I certainly see why that is, and feel that another few decades would have been to the good.

Despite its alleged topic, this actually presents a study in class consciousness from the dawn of the Victorian era. It spends the first half-hundred pages establishing the bona fides of the indigent protagonist. We very nearly approach p.130 before the word "plague" even appears, but spend all that time working out an elaborate and interlocked set of romantic interests. About mid-point in this book the pestilence makes a real appearance - except that we remain in the dark about its symptoms until seemingly healthy people drop from it at dramaturgically convenient moments, for no apparent reason.

That's when the alleged hero (a commoner) punts and genuine royalty shows its colors: an ineffectual blueblood, once declared insane by his own family, takes the reins and presides over humanity's implosion - against which, of course, the inherently noble Britons are the last to be affected, since something as low-class as a mere pathogen would necessarily infect lesser breeds of humanity first. In the end, the genetically royal leader dies of much more heroic causes than a plebian case of the whatevers, since that wouldn't be dignified enough.

If you want a classic study in class weirdness, this might be as good as it gets. The science fiction aspects falter, though, since Shelley couldn't imagine a twenty-first century without horse travel and long-hand communication technology. Then, I was baffled by her alternation between legible prose and spasms of flowery language that very nearly sank under the weight of their adjectives. I actually dragged myself to the last page of this woofer. On the whole, I found the effort quite free of literary reward.

-- wiredweird

I so disagree with all of you
I guess I can understand how a rare few might like this book, but all these reviews are glowing.I loved Frankenstein.Shelley's over-the-top romantic style meshed well with the weight of her subject matter and the driving force of her narrative. She told that story efficiently.The Last Man is completely different.It's way too long.The prelude to the beginning of the plague takes up more than half the book. Though it takes place hundreds of years ahead of Shelley's time there is no speculation (other than the abdication of the British throne) about future societies, culture, or technology. The plague itself is poorly described and there are no attempts to explain why suddenly there is plague which is 99.99999999% fatal. Even in Shelley's time, a century before germ theory was beginning to be understood, public health and sanitation were advanced enough so pandemics were not nearly as bad as they had been just 400 to 500 hundred years previous, when the black death wiped out half of Europe.
On top of this Shelley's writing is flowery, excessive and romanticised to the point of ridiculousness.She manages somehow to be melodramatic and excruciatingly boring at the same time.
Verney's complete isolation at end of the book lasted for about 15 pages. This was the closest thing in the book to interesting. The fascination in the post-apocalyptic is the idea of the experience of the lone survivor or small group remaining alive, concept presented beautifully in books such as I am Legend, Earth Abides, On the Beach, and, of course, The Road.
Mary Shelley deserves credit for writing one of the first or perhaps even inventing the post-apocalyptic novel, which is not simply version of the Biblical Revelations.This book may have been terrifying in it's day, but now it pales in comparison to the many other volumes in it's genre.

Mary Shelley
The Last Man by Mary Shelley

If you are a fan of Mary Shelley, then you will definetely enjoy this novel. Awesome ebook!

A Visionary Work
I recall seeing a "Twilight Zone" episode close to fifty years ago, about a man who really wanted to be alone. He got his wish when a nuclear war wiped out everyone else. He was quite happy at this state of affairs, migrating to the New York library to spend the rest of his life reading all the books. Unfortunately, he tripped on the steps and broke his thick reading glasses. So much for solitary bliss.

Being the last man on earth is once again a hot topic, with two recent movies addressing the issue. I Am Legend is set to enter theatres on Dec. 14, and as of Late November of 2007, a movie based upon The Last Man is in Post Production. The movie updates the setting of The Last Man to take into consideration the technology advances of the past two centuries plus the seventy-odd years that will take place before the novel's action begins. Looking at the trailer, however, it appears that technological accuracy is the only improvement made to Ms. Shelley's novel. For those interested, information on the movie can be viewed at their website.

Reading Mary Shelley's The Last Man will, if nothing else, send you running to your history books to find out, among other things, when Napoleon waged his wars for world domination (the battle of Waterloo took place in 1815-eleven years before The Last Man was published), when English Monarchs became more of a figurehead than a ruler (1867), and when Jules Verne first wrote about traveling in a balloon (Five Weeks in a Balloon in 1863, Around the World in Eighty Days in 1872), and what type of plague would kill a person before the sun goes down on his first sick day.

As in Frankenstein Mary Shelley shows herself as a sci-fi pioneer and visionary with enough political savvy to know that the strife between Christian and Muslim would not be resolved even two hundred years into the future. She also envisioned that in this distant future, we would not be safe from disastrous epidemics, although she did not suggest that germ warfare (rather than a natural spread of disease) might be the culprit. Her visions of balloon travel as a means of rapid transit predates Jules Verne by forty years, which helps us forgive the fact that in her story ground transport, even for kings, consisted of horseback or carriage.

The Last Man was published about four years after the death of Mary's husband, Percy Bysshe Shelley. Shelley drowned when his boat sank, a boat that Mary claims was not seaworthy, although a sudden squall might have caused the boat to capsize. Her husband's death in 1822 happened the same year that a miscarriage nearly took her own life and only two years after her half sister and Percy's ex-wife both committed suicide. One can see why Shelley's world-view might have been depressing, and The Last Man reflects this.

The story begins with a visit to a cave in which an unidentified narrator visits Naples in 1818, finding a manuscript in an inaccessible cave. The manuscript appears to be from the future, from the year 2079, and is written by one Lionel Verney, a close friend of the English king and Brother-in-Law to the greatest General since Napoleon. Verney will become the last man to inhabit the earth.

We follow Verney's manuscript from his early roots as a poverty-stricken orphan to his friendship with the heir-apparent to the throne of England and to a military campaign with his Brother-in-Law into plague-stricken Turkey, a campaign which touches off the worldwide plague that wipes out the human population of the Earth.

As much as I like and admire The Last Man as a visionary work, I also found a lot to dislike. I have read several books about real and fictional plagues, and have come to expect that one would at least see a description of what a plague victim experiences when in the throes of the disease. Shelley describes very little beyond a fever and a quick death. I would imagine that she was vaguely describing Pneumonic Plague, a mutation of Bubonic Plague that takes the pathogen airborne and which can kill in a matter of hours.

I also disliked Shelley's annoying habit of describing the outcome before she describes the action. I spent a lot of reading time backtracking because I was certain I missed something, since I seemed to have found out what was going to happen before I was supposed to. Our protagonist beset with grief, but I couldn't figure out why. As I read on, I discovered the reason for the grief, but since I already knew something bad was going to happen, the reading was more depressing than suspenseful.

On the up side, Mary Shelley's gifted use of the English language was perhaps better in this work than in Frankenstein. Also to her credit, Shelley, perhaps because of her many tragic experiences, quite accurately captures and expresses the angst of mourning. The Last Man was not Frankenstein, but if you have the patience to read it, you will find its mysterious makeup rather interesting. ... Read more

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This collection was designed for optimal navigation on Kindle and other electronic devices. This collection offers lower price, the convenience of a one-time download, and it reduces the clutter in your digital library. All books included in this collection feature a hyperlinked table of contents and footnotes. The collection is complimented by an author biography.

Customer Reviews (2)

Works of Mary Shelley
Works of Mary Shelley. Frankenstein, The Last Man, Falkner, Mathilda, Valperga, Lodore, The Fortunes of Perkin Warbeck & more. Published by MobileReference (mobi)

Mary Shelley was ahead of the times. She addressed many key issues that we have been discussing even to this day. I love her works because she was a visionary and to some extent almost a psychic, predicting certain trends that would impact society for many years to come.

FRANKENSTEIN
Works of Mary Shelley: Frankenstein, The Last Man, Mathilda, Proserpine & Midas, and The Poetical Works of Percy Bysshe Shelley.

Mary Shelly's ideas are so powerful that they continue to resonate today. This is an excellent collection of her works. Great ebook! ... Read more

Product Description
These three works of fiction - two by Mary Wollstonecraft, the radical author of "A Vindication of the Rights of Woman", and one by her daughter Mary Shelley, creator of "Frankenstein" - are powerfully emotive stories that combine passion with forceful feminist argument. In "Mary Wollstonecraft's Mary", the heroine flees her young husband in order to nurse her dearest friend, Ann, and finds genuine love, while Maria tells of a desperate young woman who seeks consolation in the arms of another man after the loss of her child. And Mary Shelley's "Matilda" - suppressed for over a century - tells the story of a woman alienated from society by the incestuous passion of her father. Humane, compassionate and highly controversial, these stories demonstrate the strongly original genius of their authors. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A fierce feminist and a mortal passion
The two stories of Mary Wollstonecraft 'Mary' and 'Maria' (the latter unfortunately unfinished) tackle the same problem: the position of women in society. 'But a wife being as much a man's property as his horse, or his ass, she has nothing she can call her own.'
The reactions of their protagonists are diametrically opposed.
Mary's attitude to life is resignation: 'I cannot argue against instincts.' She longs for death, to enter a 'world where there is no giving in marriage.'
Maria, on the contrary, tries to take her destiny in her own hands and hits back: 'I feel that the evils women are subject to endure, degrade them so far below their oppressors as almost to justify their tyranny.'

Both stories show the author's general social preoccupations.
Mary is confronted with hunger, want of education, poverty and misery, but her reaction is melancholic: 'I have been wounded by ingratitude'.
Maria attacks 'the enslaved state of the labouring majority' and 'the evils which arise in society from the despotism of rank and riches.' She appeals for more social justice.

'Maria' is a much stronger work than 'Mary'. It has a better plot and its message is still actual.

'Matilda' was considered too shocking to be published for over a century, because it treats a taboo passion: incest.
It is a powerful portrait of a fatal attraction between a father and his daughter.
It is brilliantly written by an intelligent and very well read author: 'more lovely than a sunbeam, slighter, quicker than the waving plumage of a bird, dazzling as lightning and like it giving day to night, yet mild and faint, that smile came.'

The stories are excellently introduced by Janet Todd.

Highly recommended.

I love you
When Matilda's dad admits to his daughter that he loves her the world falls apart for them both. How can this be so? Mary Shelley creates a scenario - so similar to aspects of her own childhood - that makes sense of this. The love expressed in this ever-so-ambiguous word is, in this case, the inappropriate form of love. What disappoints me about this is that no-one recovers from this situation, and others continue to be damaged/hurt. Once again, as I've seen in so many other works of fiction, the 'damaged' person is given no chance of recovery, of rising above the disaster.

Mary Shelley is such an interesting person (far more interesting than the popular interpretations of her novel Frankenstein suggest) but to appreciate her, even in part, I believe you need to consider her parents. Her father was William Godwin, perhaps the real originator of anarchism (although I don't think he used that word). He was a firm believer that people acting alone can achieve more and better than is achieved by having them controlled and imposed on by laws and governments. Mary's mother was Mary Wollstonecraft - a champion of equal rights for women. When Mary became pregnant, Mary and William chose to get married - not for themselves - they didn't believe in the institution of marriage - but for the child. Sadly Mary Wollstonecraft died in childbirth and William was left with a new baby (whom he named Mary after her mother) and a slightly older girl, Fanny.All of William's beliefs that people should live their own lives in their own preferred ways was challenged by Mary - especially in her relationship with the poet Percy Bysse Shelley whom she married (hence the name Mary Shelley).

When Mary lost her own baby boy William (named after her father?), she got some of her grief out by writing Matilda. But it appalled William and he refused to allow it to be printed. Even the strongest philosophies will fall apart!! But if you read Matilda and recall the facts of William and Mary's lives, you will see why.

This is a valuable book, containing not only Mary's short novel Matilda, but also two works of her mother.

Recommended other reading:
Frankenstein - Mary Shelley (this is a thoughtful and serious work)
Enquiry Concerning Political Justice - William Godwin (this is very long but is also very thoughtful and a great lead in to reading more accessible anarchists such as Peter Kropotkin, as well as less accessible ones like Max Stirner)
Caleb Williams - William Godwin
... Read more

Product Description

ReadHowYouWant publishes a wide variety of best selling books in Large and Super Large fonts in partnership with leading publishers. EasyRead books are available in 11pt and 13pt. type. EasyRead Large books are available in 16pt, 16pt Bold, and 18pt Bold type. EasyRead Super Large books are available in 20pt. Bold and 24pt. Bold Type. You choose the format that is right for you.

This is Volume Volume 1 of 2-Volume Set.To purchase the complete set, you will need to order the other volumes separately: to find them, search for the following ISBNs: 9781427080059

Valperga (1823) by Mary Shelley is a historic novel about the adventures of Castruccio Castracani, a 14th-century Italian prince, captain, and tyrant. He attacks the Valpegra fortress, which is ruled by the Countess Euthanasia, whom he loves. Compelled to choose from amongst her love for him and her freedom, she makes a choice that results in her murder.

To find more titles in your format, Search in Books using EasyRead and the size of the font that makes reading easier and more enjoyable for you.

Customer Reviews (1)

Gothic at its best
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.


... Read more

Product Description
This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

Product Description
The book has no illustrations or index. Purchasers are entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Subjects: Mythology, Classical; Proserpina (Roman deity); Midas (Legendary character); Drama / English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh; Drama / General; Drama / General; Drama / English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh; ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (4)

Authentic story without the charm
This version of Frankenstein, Classic Starts: Frankenstein, presents the reader with the original story, taking some liberties because of the targeted reading audience. (For example, the monster kills little WIlliam.In this version it is portrayed as an accident because the monster tried to keep William quiet, while in the original, the monster grabbed William by the throat.)Although the original version is difficult to read because of the dense style of writing, this version lacks the romantic charm of the original text.It does, however, allow the younger reader or poorer reader to access the story and learn the true story of Frankenstein, not the Hollywood movie version.

A modern retelling of the classic that retains the power of the original
In my opinion, the classics should be read in their original form. However, if that is not possible, then, as long as they are done right, reading an adaptation is acceptable. This retelling of the classic tale by Shelley captures the terror of science gone wrong, the primary message of the original story. It would be an effective literary counterweight if it were to be read either before or after the movie was shown in class.
This is not the original story; it has been rewritten to appeal to modern young readers while retaining all the original structure of the original. Sterling publishing has successfully accomplished that goal, and they are to be commended for that.

pce student review
Frankenstein was a great book.My favorite scene was when the creator was in his lab and Frankenstein was saying (if you don't finish Mrs. Frankenstein I will harm you and your family.)My favorite character was the creator because he was mysterious and crazy and didn't know what to do or say.From what I read I think the moral of the story was be careful what you create.

I love this book because it was different and unusual.Also because it's a mystery and those books get into your head; like everything in the book is happening in real life, and the tension rises in your stomach.This book is good for ages 10 and up.This is one of those books that you should read before you die.

Excellent Book
I am an 8 year old boy who read this book & I finished it in a whole week.The book was told by the letters of Captain Robert Walton. Walton meets Victor Frankenstein who was sooner or later going to marry his adopted sister Elizabeth. Frankenstein goes to university and learns about science. He wants to make a man for his project. After it came to life Frankenstein was afraid of it. He thinks it is a monster. In a couple of months his best friend, Henry joins the university. Frankenstein was worried that Henry would be afraid of the monster and not like Victor anymore. Soon,Frankenstein receives a letter saying his brother William was dead. Frankenstein soon goes back home. Elizabeth's friend, Justine went to prison because everyone thought she did it except for Victor & Elizabeth. Victor finds the monster in the exact spot he killed William. The monster tells about his life and also tells him he wanted a wife. Frankenstein got married to Elizabeth. Soon,the monster kills Elizabeth because he didn't make his wife. Soon he goes on trial for finding out who killed his dear friend,Henry. Frankenstein went to prison guilty,but the judge knew it was not him. His father also comes to visit him. Soon he comes out of jail. He sees Captain Robert Walton again
and he dies.

Classic Starts is a nice way for children to experience classic stories.

If you want a story that has lots of violence. Get this today! ... Read more

Product Description
Get your "A" in gear!

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And with everything covered--context; plot overview; character lists; themes, motifs, and symbols; summary and analysis, key facts; study questions and essay topics; and reviews and resources--you don't have to go anywhere else!



... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Good analysis
I don't advocate reading SparkNotes (or CliffNotes) but if you are a high school/college student with a busy schedule and don't have time to read Shelley's novel, this does give a complete and accurate summary of the book's contents; it also explores the themes and leitmotivs of the novel quite well. I recommend it highly, although I would never recommend reading SparkNotes in place of the novel itself.

Frankenstein!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Frankenstein is an exellent book. I would reccomend it to anyone who likes science,action, and adventure. It is filled with the adventures of Frankenstein and his "creature". I really enjoyed it. You really should read it.


~Taylor ... Read more

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Notes to the Complete Poetical Works of Percy Bysshe Shelley; Mathilda and Proserpine and Midas ... Read more

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This is an EXACT reproduction of a book published before 1923. This IS NOT an OCR'd book with strange characters, introduced typographical errors, and jumbled words.This book may have occasional imperfections such as missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. that were either part of the original artifact, or were introduced by the scanning process. We believe this work is culturally important, and despite the imperfections, have elected to bring it back into print as part of our continuing commitment to the preservation of printed works worldwide. We appreciate your understanding of the imperfections in the preservation process, and hope you enjoy this valuable book. ... Read more

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The Amazing Competence of the Monster
Amazing Competence of the Monster: Liberals Encounter Revolutionaries (or Liberals and Counter-Revolutionaries).

Friedrich Nietzsche recalls Napoleon Bonaparte's exclamation, "Voila un home!" after the Emperor's first meeting with Johan Wolfgang von Goethe (in Beyond Good and Evil).In his early forties during the French Revolution, Goethe had been groomed to the literary fashion of the rational, repressed, and scientific Enlightenment. Yet it may be easier to classify Goethe with a later generation, the sensitive, dark, and emotional Romantic Movement. Writing in the 1880's, Nietzsche situated Goethe as a proxy for a rising "spirit of Germany." The ultimate imperialist, Napoleon, had come face to face with this spirit and was impressed to find a man where he "expected only a German."

But during the earliest decades of the century, the romantics still considered Bonaparte to be a defender of the revolution. A corollary moment was frozen in time by Mary Shelley. When the liberals of the enlightenment looked into the face of the radical revolutionary, presumably a monster of their own creation, their response was horror. More important to the point, when a romantic novelist observed this interaction between liberal and radical, what did she perceive? Mary Shelley watched this encounter seeing a frightened and untrustworthy element, the enlightened liberal, who underestimated the value and humanity of his own creation. Shelley accuses these liberals of abandoning the revolution at its most vulnerable stage. If the enlightened liberals did not deserve retribution, they would receive it nonetheless.

Social revolution, one foreseeable outcome of Enlightenment ideas projected onto the surface of aristocratic hegemony, might be blamed by the threatened for chaos, suffering, and mob rule. Yet there is much evidence suggesting Mary Shelley romanticized the revolutionary hero, and damned the enlightened liberals as a class of timid and wavering reactionaries.First, there are contextual clues. Mary Goodwin Shelley, the daughter of the radical anarchist writer William Goodwin, was herself no moderate. Biographical details of her travels, associations and the causes to which she clung indicate very radical leanings. Perhaps more compelling than this kind of external evidence, the narrative structure of Frankenstein suggests that Shelley offers Victor Frankenstein as an unreliable eye witness, himself implicated in the tragic consequences he attributes to the monster.

Initially, the story of the "monster" is told by Dr. Victor Frankenstein. And Victor's narrative is, in turn, relayed by an Englishman, Robert Walton. During the enlightenment, an eyewitness account by a Doctor of Natural Philosophy endorsed by an educated Englishman was formidable surety. Yet, a comparison of Victor's description of the unnamed "monster" with the creature's own account provides more textual clues to Shelley's attack on European liberalism. Readers could rightly expect to encounter an awkward, dull-witted, and withdrawn monster. We are, after all, tricked into this expectation. Shelley provides the first view of the living creature as it was seen through its creator's eyes. Frankenstein recalls that as he awoke from a nightmare:

"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, and he muttered some inarticulate sounds, while a grin wrinkled his cheeks. He might have spoken, but I did nothear; one hand was stretched out seemingly to detain me, but I escaped, and rushed down the stairs" (58)


A reader might reasonably expect to encounter a character from the early films which were influenced by the book, a monster of the "OH GOD IT LIVES" variety. Yet in Frankenstein, when the unnamed "monster" finally steps up to the podium of first person narration in chapter XI, an abrupt reconsideration is demanded.

"It is with considerable difficulty that I remember the original era of my being: all the events of that period appear confused and indistinct. A strange multiplicity of sensations seized me, and I saw, felt, heard, and smelt, at the same time; and it was, indeed, a long time before I learned to distinguish between the operation of my various senses."


Within two sentences, the "Monster" has become a someone; "Voila un home!" This sentient being expresses his individual and singular experience, the agony and confusion of achieving consciousness in a world of heat, cold, hunger, thirst, and loneliness. Missing only the sense of taste (a possible pun on the tasteful attitudes of the liberal classes toward the revolting workers) the "creature" emerges into the world already fully grown and alone. The monster's account provides ample evidence of an eloquent and sensitive human being. And Frankenstein's broken promise to provide the "creature" with companionship incited the murderous rampages. Dare we use the descriptors "Heroic" and "Romantic?"

Despite what a reader may learn from Victor Frankenstein's narrative, the "monster" has become competent, articulate, and sensitive.And by comparing this superhuman competence to the timid and unreliable Victor Frankenstein, we can gain an important insight into the attitudes Mary Shelley may have held toward both the reactionary liberal and the emerging revolutionary.
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The Last Man Volume II. Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork. ... Read more

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This is an Elementary Level story in a series of ELT readers comprising a wide range of titles - some original and some simplified - from modern and classic novels, and designed to appeal to all age-groups, tastes and cultures. The books are divided into five levels: Starter Level, with about 300 basic words; Beginner Level (600 basic words); Elementary Level (1100); Intermediate Level (1600); and Upper Level (2200). Some of the titles are also available on cassette. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Gothic at its best
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.


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The novel presents man's search and quest for the ultimate power and godhood. It is a narrative of man's interference into nature and the consequent destruction. It also delves into human psychology that rejects everything ugly. Written in the times of Industrial Revolution, the work also comments on the conditions of society and people.

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