Halloween is fast approaching... but the candy has already made it to my desk. Yum! Anyway, The Boyfriend just finished reading Dracula just in time for Halloween. (I did the same a few years back.) That spurred me to create a list of classic halloween reads.
Trick or Treat!
Dracula
Bram Stoker
Your classic vampire tale. This is the original, and it is rather spectacular. I remember thinking it was streaky. The book is good, for the most part - but the very readable passages are spread out with much narrative. Don't let my review deceive you, this is a good read.
Frankenstein or the Modern Prometheus
Mary Shelley
They did the mash! The monster mash! Science + Mad Scientist = Pitchfork wielding peasant fun. Shelley set out to to explore how science and injustice act in society. A spooky read that leaves the reader questioning their own humanity over the monster's.
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Robert Louis Stevenson
Of all the classic scary novels out there, this is the one I want to read the most. We're all a bit bipolar, but Stevenson tells a story of one man who is two different people. This book is part mystery, part philosophy, part struggle between a person's good and evil.
The Tell-Tale Heart
Edgar Allen Poe
Most of us had to read this is short story in High School (or, if not this, then The Cask of Amontillado). Poe knows his suspense and dramatic tension. Murder, a cover up, and a guilty conscience. This is a classic thriller by a classic prose author.
The Complete Grimm's Fairy Tales
Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm
Think these tales are child's play? Wrong! The modern take offs of this stories have been Disneyified. The classic Grimm tales are all chopped off limbs, blood, and evil naughty people. These short tales are perfect for terrifying yourself (or small children).
The Haunting of Hill House
Shirley Jackson
A Halloween based list has to have some haunting in it. Spooky mansion, scary noises, and naive characters - this has Halloween written all over it. I would not recommend reading this book while you're home alone.
Other Halloween-esque Reads
Heart of Darkness
- Joseph Conrad
The Hound of the Baskerville
s - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
The Invisible Man
- H.G. Wells
The Island of Doctor Moreau
- H.G. Wells
The Man in the Iron Mask
- Alexander Dumas
The Phantom of the Opera
- Gaston Leroux
The Picture of Dorian Gray
- Oscar Wilde
The Woman in White
- Wilkie Collins
The Yellow Wallpaper and Other Stories
- Charlotte Perkins Gilman
If you l liked this Variations on a Theme - check out the one on Zombies!
Trick or Treat!
DraculaBram Stoker
Your classic vampire tale. This is the original, and it is rather spectacular. I remember thinking it was streaky. The book is good, for the most part - but the very readable passages are spread out with much narrative. Don't let my review deceive you, this is a good read.
Frankenstein or the Modern Prometheus
Mary Shelley
They did the mash! The monster mash! Science + Mad Scientist = Pitchfork wielding peasant fun. Shelley set out to to explore how science and injustice act in society. A spooky read that leaves the reader questioning their own humanity over the monster's.
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. HydeRobert Louis Stevenson
Of all the classic scary novels out there, this is the one I want to read the most. We're all a bit bipolar, but Stevenson tells a story of one man who is two different people. This book is part mystery, part philosophy, part struggle between a person's good and evil.
The Tell-Tale Heart Edgar Allen Poe
Most of us had to read this is short story in High School (or, if not this, then The Cask of Amontillado). Poe knows his suspense and dramatic tension. Murder, a cover up, and a guilty conscience. This is a classic thriller by a classic prose author.
The Complete Grimm's Fairy TalesJacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm
Think these tales are child's play? Wrong! The modern take offs of this stories have been Disneyified. The classic Grimm tales are all chopped off limbs, blood, and evil naughty people. These short tales are perfect for terrifying yourself (or small children).
The Haunting of Hill HouseShirley Jackson
A Halloween based list has to have some haunting in it. Spooky mansion, scary noises, and naive characters - this has Halloween written all over it. I would not recommend reading this book while you're home alone.
Other Halloween-esque Reads
Heart of Darkness
- Joseph ConradThe Hound of the Baskerville
s - Sir Arthur Conan DoyleThe Invisible Man
- H.G. WellsThe Island of Doctor Moreau
- H.G. WellsThe Man in the Iron Mask
- Alexander Dumas The Phantom of the Opera
- Gaston LerouxThe Picture of Dorian Gray
- Oscar Wilde The Woman in White
- Wilkie CollinsThe Yellow Wallpaper and Other Stories
- Charlotte Perkins GilmanIf you l liked this Variations on a Theme - check out the one on Zombies!
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