Zastrozzi - Percy Bysshe Shelley

Advantages: Interesting, readable, raises relevant questions
Disadvantages: A bit depressing - not summer holiday reading

...A morbid subject, but this is a wide-ranging, fascinating work of great interest to anyone keen on medical history. The book illustrates the romantic image of the disease which has arisen from its association with writers such as Emily Bronte and Percy Bysshe Shelley – (you only have to go into a modern day English lecture to hear haunting coughs issuing from pale faces) – and successfully subverts this image by examining the genuine horrors of ‘the Captain of all these men of Death’. From classical antiquity to the 20th century, Dormandy shows the impact of tuberculosis on society and the methods by which that society sought to combat it. This is an intricately researched, thought-provoking and authoritative work which not only sheds light on the past but raises questions about the future. It will be invaluable to anyone studying... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful

Advantages: Amazing Plot, Well written, Makes you think!
Disadvantages: Marred by dodgy film versions

...The Author Mary Shelley, born Mary Wollstonecraft in 1797, was brought up by her father but ran away to France at the age of 16 with the poet, Percy Bysshe Shelley, whom she later married. It was whilst staying in Switzerland with Shelley and his friend Lord Byron that she began her most famous work; Frankenstein. It began life as her 'entry' in a ghost story contest instigated by Byron and is said to have been inspired by a dream. The Plot (WARNING: Plot spoilers!!) Frankenstein is a young man studying Natural Philosophy at Geneva. His research leads him to create a being from body parts, that resembles a human. Through much experimentation Frankenstein succeeds in bringing his creation to life. It has tremendous strength and inspires terror in all who encounter it, including Frankenstein who flees. However the creature seeks him... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Timeless story, sweeping visualisation
Disadvantages: Old vernacular

...with the inevitable notion of comparing it to Stoker's Dracula. I have to say that the two books are very different albeit both lit a flame in a literary sense that still burns brightly today. With Frankenstein being so well known it's worth giving a brief introduction to its writer - Mary Shelley. Born in 1797, the daughter of William Godwin & Mary Wollstonecraft, Mary went on to become one of the world's most renowned writers. Her parents were both radical writers of their day providing something of an influence to the talented Mary. She met the then unknown, Percy Bysshe Shelley in 1814 with whom she eloped to the continent In 1816, residing on the shores of Lake Geneva, Percy suggested a ghost story competition inspiring Mary to start her original work. Subsequently finished in England, the book was initially met with mixed reviews on its publication... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful