Dracula
We took a long break. Not because we ran out of books but because we’re an actual family, not content creators. There were trips. There were kids, and homeschool, and a big yard, and enough sewing to swallow a whole house. We kept reading great books the whole time. We just didn’t talk about it into a microphone. We’re well-rested and ready to start again, but at a slower pace. So, two books a month, give or take. Paid subscriptions are back on, and if you’ve been supporting the show, thank you. You’ll get what you paid for. Now. Dracula. Go look for commentary on this book online and you’ll be told, very seriously, that it’s about stuffy Victorian morality. Everybody knows Victorian morality was stuffy. Why? Because it was Victorian! That’s all we know about it, apparently. Or it’s a coded story about disease, again because Victorians or something. In our opinion, sometimes an author just wants to tell a story. Bram Stoker tells a real horror story. He spends page after page on people who love each other and trust each other and are good all the way down. Then he sends something in to ruin them, and it goes after them because they’re good. We explore more of this “classic” in our return episode. One warning for parents: in the last third, Dracula’s second attack on Mina has sexual overtones, and her husband lies there unable to move while it happens. It’s horror done horrifically. Know it’s coming before you hand this one to your teenager. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit arslibri.substack.com
