Notes on Dracula

It is a bit of a quandary to be reading two novels simultaneously... and poor East of Eden is getting the shaft, as I am a bit antsy to finish reading Dracula on the Kindle so that I can pass on the device to a co-worker to test. I'm not sure exactly how long Dracula is, but the Kindle tells me that I have read 17% of it.

I am enjoying the writing and the perspective of the protagonist via his journal. I have to admit, it really is a bit scary! The night before last I was relieved to get a late night phone call from a friend after I had finished reading before going to bed, thus distancing my mind from the story before falling asleep. Last night, however, I dreamt that two of my brothers were vampires, and I had to kill them. I am usually not affected by things--particularly books--like this, and I am not a person who dreams often. I am beginning to think I should avoid reading Dracula directly before going to sleep...

This afternoon I was discussing the book with a co-worker (who has not read it) and we were pondering where Stoker was from, and if the novel had been translated into English from another language. Bram Stoker. Seems like an Eastern European name, right? And of course, it all takes place in Transylvania. Imagine our surprise when we looked it up online and found that Bram Stoker is from Ireland, and his real name is Abraham. Perhaps this is common knowledge to others, but it was news to me.

the kindle

My publishing company is the proud (AKA: skeptical) owner of an Amazon Kindle. We are taking turns in the office handling the Kindle, reading books, downloading books, and studying layout formats as we prepare for our first forage into the realm of e-publishing.

It is my turn with the Kindle. I downloaded (for free) Dracula by Bram Stoker. Dracula is the novel that truly introduced the vampire to the literary world. While not the first novel to to showcase a vampire, it is inarguably the most readily identified classic in the vampire "genre." I wonder if Bram Stoker had any idea how hot this topic would be over a hundred years later.

Thoughts on the Kindle so far:

Pros:                                                                                     
-Many classic novels are free to download.
-When the Kindle is turned off, the screen displays an image (a different one each time), so it looks kind of like a book.                             
-The Kindle remembers where you left off in a book and goes straight to that page when you turn it back on.


Cons:
-It feels awkward to hold--not like a book at all--but this may be something that just takes some getting used to.
-The "pages" are small, so you need to move to the next page frequently.
-It is NOT a book!


I have no problem with the influx of e-readers becoming available, especially if it means more people are reading more books, because they find this format and process convenient and enjoyable. I, for one, will always love my real books. I like to see them on my bookshelf. I like to hold them and smell them and throw them in my oversize purse when I'm heading out the door. So long as e-publishing and e-readers and e-books do not obliterate regular books, bring on the technology.