Frankenstein or, The Modern Prometheus by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

Is it bad that I went into this book kind of expecting not to like it? I saw a film version a while back (haven't we all?) and, of course, I wasn't super impressed. I'm not really a scary-movie, ghost-story kind of girl, and that's what I expected this book to be. Spooky if read by candlelight with a thunderstorm raging outside, but otherwise, rather dull and uninspired.

This is how we all imagine Frankenstein's monster...

Well, all of you who have read Frankenstein, you'll understand my embarrassment. If you haven't read Frankenstein and think the same way about it that I did...um, read it. Read it right now.

Frankenstein has the power to turn a sunny, cheerful neighborhood at high noon into a creepy alley with shadows lurking around every corner, which made it a perfect read for Halloween. But the book was more than that--much, much more.

The book is not about a stupid green monster with nails sticking out his neck who was created by a cackling mad scientist. (Probably needless to say for most of you, but I needed the education.) It's about human nature and the way people treat each other, and the way people see themselves.