Skylight Music Theatre's Board Member, Tessa Bartels, also known as the Book Concierge, has your book recommendations before or after seeing Frankenstein: the Musical.
Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel was originally titled: Frankenstein; or the Modern Prometheus.
In Greek mythology, Prometheus was a god of fire. He is said to have created humanity from clay. He’s also known for being the father of arts and sciences. But Prometheus defied the Gods of Mount Olympus; he stole fire and gave it to humanity. For this, he was punished by Zeus who sentenced him to eternal torment. Prometheus was bound to a rock and an eagle (the symbol of Zeus) pecked out his liver, which to the ancient Greeks was the source of human emotions. The liver would grow back overnight, and the eagle returned and peck it out again the next day. Ad infinitum.
In Western tradition, Prometheus symbolizes man’s quest for knowledge and the risk of overreaching. In the Romantic era, he was seen as the lone genius whose efforts to improve human existence might also have tragic consequences.
Of course, I recommend reading Shelley’s original work. It’s a brilliant book that many regard as the first “science fiction” novel. When my book club read it, we had a fabulous discussion. One of the questions that garnered the greatest response was “How does society create monsters; what kind of monsters does modern society create?”
If you’d like to read more about Mary Shelley, try one or more of these books.
Mary’s Monster: Love, Madness, and How Mary Shelley Created Frankenstein by Lita Judge – Graphic novel. This is a young-adult biography of the young-adult author, which was published in 2018 to coincide with the 200th anniversary of the publication of Shelley’s debut novel. Written in free verse, the book contains hundreds of black-and-white watercolor illustrations.
Romantic Outlaws: The Extraordinary Lives of Mary Wollstonecraft
and Her Daughter Mary Shelley by Charlotte Gordon – Nonfiction, biography. Although mother and daughter, these two brilliant women never knew one another – Wollstonecraft died a week after giving birth. Yet, their lives had significant parallels. Both women became famous writers; fell in love with brilliant but impossible men; and were single mothers who had children out of wedlock; both lived in exile; fought for their position in society; and thought deeply about how we should live. And both women broke almost every rigid convention there was to break.
Her Lost Words by Stephanie Marie Thornton – Historical Fiction. This is a novel about the mother and daughter: Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley. “A tale of two literary legends…. a firebrand feminist, her visionary daughter, and the many ways their words transformed our world.” (from the publisher via Goodreads.com)
Love and Fury by Samantha Silva – Historical fiction. The novel is told in alternating chapters by Mary Wollstonecraft, as she narrates her life story to her newborn daughter, Mary Shelley, and by Mrs. B, the midwife who stayed on as a nurse to the child.
And for something a bit different:
My Imaginary Mary by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jody Meadows – Young Adult Historical Fantasy. Mary is searching for an idea for a story to impress her secret beau, Percy Byce Shelley. Ada, who loves mechanical engineering, has conceived of an automaton, but she can’t quite get her creature to be autonomous. Fate connects the two and they learn they are fae – magical people. But when they succeed, they find themselves hunted by a mad scientist intent on learning how they made a real boy out of spare parts.