This is a 4 star read for me, but in all honesty, if it weren't for the details I'm nitpicking, I could pretty much rate it 5 stars. I'll leave them for the last and first talk about what I found good about this book. First of all, it is scary Hollywood-esque monster free! Even that is a good reason to give it to a shot. Secondly, it's not just a fantasy tale, the conversations that take place between characters or their inner monologues give rise to important questions, some of which as old as the history of humanity, for example "Is man inherently good or evil?". And for last, it isn't one-sided. We listen to Frankenstein's story but we get a glimpse of the Creature's too, though it's also filtered through Victor's point of view. There is no single villain or bad guy that should be get rid of in order to be happy ever after in this book. Because humans, both the main character Victor and side characters such as Felix, Agatha, Muhammadan are capable of being guilty and are guilty. In fact, since both Victor and the Creature play the guilt game by placing the fault on others, we get to see how similar they are. Victor blames himself on the surface, but as his death approaches, he confesses that he doesn't think he was the mistaken one. And the Creature claims he suffers, but all the bad things he's done, he blames those on people who mistreated him. Doesn't that make him as human as any of us?
And now, let's talk about the small 'issues' I couldn't ignore. I know I shouldn't expect much realism from this genre, but seriously the creature learned to speak French faster than Safie (who speaks at least two other languages as it's hinted in the book) and started reading literary works filled with metaphors and similes in less than a year?! It's more unbelievable than a being brought into existence by another man, sorry. Also, what's up with women in this book? That typical passive, just beautiful and kind but nothing more trope welcomes us. I mean, yes, I'm prepared to encounter dainty Mary Sues in the classics but since the Frankenstein was written by a woman, I got my expectations high for that one. Another issue, though it's subtle, is the book's tendency to glamorize Western features through its description and slight undertones of 'Orientalism'. The only characters whose ethnicity was important enough to call them by it were Safie, the Arabian, and her dad, Muhammadan. Not to mention that Safie's beauty had to do with her paleness beside other features, just like the reasons for Catherine's adoptation. She was fair, blonde and pale. Also, an upper-class girl such as Safie (her dad was a rich merchant) knew nothing about the world she lived in, not only the French language. She learned the name of the cities from Felix, for goodness sake! I know these might not be intentional, and I can't say my complaints ruined the pleasure of reading this book, but I think with women with actual personality traits and hobbies, and without the 'Orientalist' tendencies I'd have liked it better.
This is a 4 star read for me, but in all honesty, if it weren't for the details I'm nitpicking, I could pretty much rate it 5 stars. I'll leave them for the last and first talk about what I found good about this book.
First of all, it is scary Hollywood-esque monster free! Even that is a good reason to give it to a shot.
Secondly, it's not just a fantasy tale, the conversations that take place between characters or their inner monologues give rise to important questions, some of which as old as the history of humanity, for example "Is man inherently good or evil?".
And for last, it isn't one-sided. We listen to Frankenstein's story but we get a glimpse of the Creature's too, though it's also filtered through Victor's point of view. There is no single villain or bad guy that should be get rid of in order to be happy ever after in this book. Because humans, both the main character Victor and side characters such as Felix, Agatha, Muhammadan are capable of being guilty and are guilty. In fact, since both Victor and the Creature play the guilt game by placing the fault on others, we get to see how similar they are. Victor blames himself on the surface, but as his death approaches, he confesses that he doesn't think he was the mistaken one. And the Creature claims he suffers, but all the bad things he's done, he blames those on people who mistreated him. Doesn't that make him as human as any of us?
And now, let's talk about the small 'issues' I couldn't ignore. I know I shouldn't expect much realism from this genre, but seriously the creature learned to speak French faster than Safie (who speaks at least two other languages as it's hinted in the book) and started reading literary works filled with metaphors and similes in less than a year?! It's more unbelievable than a being brought into existence by another man, sorry. Also, what's up with women in this book? That typical passive, just beautiful and kind but nothing more trope welcomes us. I mean, yes, I'm prepared to encounter dainty Mary Sues in the classics but since the Frankenstein was written by a woman, I got my expectations high for that one. Another issue, though it's subtle, is the book's tendency to glamorize Western features through its description and slight undertones of 'Orientalism'. The only characters whose ethnicity was important enough to call them by it were Safie, the Arabian, and her dad, Muhammadan. Not to mention that Safie's beauty had to do with her paleness beside other features, just like the reasons for Catherine's adoptation. She was fair, blonde and pale. Also, an upper-class girl such as Safie (her dad was a rich merchant) knew nothing about the world she lived in, not only the French language. She learned the name of the cities from Felix, for goodness sake! I know these might not be intentional, and I can't say my complaints ruined the pleasure of reading this book, but I think with women with actual personality traits and hobbies, and without the 'Orientalist' tendencies I'd have liked it better.