Frankenstein
Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft
Paperback
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One of my favorite classics ever is Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.  Began in 1816, at the age of 18, and published anonymously in 1818, Shelley originally planned to only write a short story for the enjoyment of herself and other company at Lord Byrons Villa Diodati.  Encouraged by her lover, and later husband, she continued to work on the original idea and produced a full fledged manuscript. 

The novel tells the story of one mad scientists and his quest to create life through science.  The "monster" he creates is frightening, to everyone, including the monster himself.  It is a story of not just the pull of power, and the corruption of life, but of a being, neither man nor animal, that deserves pity and sympathy as well as our fear. 

The subject of popular fiction, Frankenstein inspired an entire genre of horror stories and films.

BOOK SYNOPSIS
At once a Gothic thriller, a passionate romance, and a cautionary tale about the dangers of science, Frankenstein tells the story of science student Victor Frankenstein, who is obsessed with "bestowing animation upon lifeless matter." Frankenstein assembles a human being from stolen body parts; but upon bringing it to life, he recoils in horror at the creature's hideousness. Tormented by loneliness, the creature unleashes a campaign of murderous revenge against his creator.

Frankenstein, an instant best-seller and an important ancestor of both the horror and science-
fiction genres, not only tells a terrifying story, but also raises profound questions about the
nature of life and the place of humankind within the cosmos. In our age, filled with news of organ donation, genetic engineering, and bio-terrorism, these questions are more relevant than ever.