Full disclosure, I read this book for a BA class
and probably wouldn't have started (and definitely not finished) it it weren't for that reason. This was my first exposure to what I'd call "Classic Horror". I am thrilled that I managed to complete it, even though the rambling style was quite boring and slow-paced. The story is told through diary entries, news-clip articles, and such, which I think lessen the story although it's definitely "an interesting, artistic" choice. I seem to be a bit of a pleb when it comes to the arts, preferring generic, straight-forward, popular story-telling.

However, the history of the novel is fascinating, delving into the meaning and interpretation of the book (for a class project) I found my eyes widening. Every single book or story has the potential to blow anyone's mind if you only bother to dig deep enough - one of the reasons why I think literature courses are so important, listening to other people's thoughts and opinions on books can often enrich your own understanding.

My interpretation was queer-centred, focusing on the way Dracula himself represents the "otherness" that has been read through many lenses: gender, sexuality, hatred of Jews, immigrants and more. There are hundreds of articles exploring each that I highly recommend to anyone interested. For me the story's message can be read as a criticism of gender-roles and the suppression of women and their sexuality, living in the closet as a queer person (very popular in analysis given Stoker's relationship with Oscar Wilde), and the battle between what is defined as "good": England, patriotism, firm gender-roles, and the "bad": Dracula's invasion, open displays of sexuality and looser morals. Each reader must come to their own conclusion.

In any case this book was massively influential to me, sparking a rich interest in the horror genre, bubbling up questions of what it is that we find horrific during which time periods and what the monsters in our stories represent.

The book is long and rambling but absolutely worth the read for those who wish to familiarise themselves with one of the works that helped originate horror as a literary form. It's fantastic for analysis and an important history artefact. The book itself wasn't truly entertaining to me but the world it opened was, and continues to be.

Dracula: Bram Stoker