Home Frankenstein (Illustrated Classics) by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (ISBN: 9781599058979)

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Frankenstein (Illustrated Classics) Hardcover - 2009

Name: Frankenstein (Illus. Classics) HARDCOVER (Saddleback's Illustrated Classics)
Price: 34.11 USD
Availability: InStock
Author: Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
ISBN: 9781599058979

by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

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About this book

Frankenstein; or, the Modern Prometheus is a Gothic novel written by Mary Shelley in 1818. The story revolves around Victor Frankenstein, a scientist who creates a monstrous creature and immediately regrets his actions, abandoning the creature to its own devices. The creature, seeking acceptance and revenge, terrorizes Victor and those he loves. Themes of ambition, ethics, humanity, and loneliness are explored through Shelley's vivid descriptions of the natural world and her characters' psychological torment. Frankenstein remains a classic of Gothic literature and a seminal work of science fiction.

Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin wrote the first draft of her groundbreaking novel in 1816, while on a trip to Lake Geneva with her soon-to-be husband, poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, and poet Lord Byron. They were stuck indoors during famously known as the Year Without a Summer.

From the publisher

These literary masterpieces are made easy and interesting. This series features classic tales retold with color illustrations to introduce literature to struggling readers. Each 64-page hardcover book retains key phrases and quotations from the original classics. When Victor Frankenstein, a brilliant scientist, tries to create life in his laboratory, the result is an ugly monster. Instantly feared by all who see him, the hated monster is driven into the countryside. Never given a chance at friendship or human companionship, the monster plots a terrible revenge!

First Edition Identification

A small London publishing house, Lackington, Hughes, Harding, Mavor & Jones, first printed Frankenstein: or, the Modern Prometheus in a limited series of just 500 copies on January 1, 1818. By then, Mary was just 20 years old. The first edition was published anonymously in 1818, with a preface by Percy B. Shelley and a dedication to Mary’s father, philosopher William Godwin. Mary Shelley didn’t publicly claim her novel until years later, and her name appears in the second edition, published in 1823. First edition original pasteboards were in blueish gray.

First editions are very scarce and exceptionally rare on the market. In 2021 one of the first 500 copies of the novel was sold at auction for $1.17 million. It was the first Frankenstein first edition copy to be auctioned since 1985.