Folio Archives 310: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley 2004

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Folio Archives 310: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley 2004

1wcarter
Bewerkt: feb 16, 2023, 6:08 pm

Frankenstein or Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelley 2004

This classic of horror fiction was written in 1818 and published anonymously, but received little acclaim until it was produced as a stage play in 1823 which caused a sensation because of its graphic content. Since then this story of a young physiologist who created a monster that ran amok amongst his family and friends has never been out of print.

The xxviii + 221 page book is introduced by Miranda Seymour and contains 10 black and white illustrations by Harry Brockway. It is bound in dark grey cloth blocked with a wrap-around black and silver design. The endpapers are a gorgeously deep unadorned purple, and it is housed in a black slipcase. 23.5x15.4cm.

The Folio Society has produced two other editions of Frankenstein.

2016
A collectable edition which has the same contents as the 2004 edition reviewed below, but in a slightly smaller format, and with no slipcase, coloured page tops and a ribbon marker.



2022
A totally new larger format limited edition with eight colour plates and nine black-and-white vignettes by Angela Barrett. It was introduced by Richard Holmes and had all page edges silvered. Bound in blue leather, cover blocked in silver and black foils with a design by Angela Barret, there were 750 copies issued at £300.



2004 edition

























































A curiosity is the SP Books 1000 copy limited edition facsimile of Mary Shelley’s original manuscript. It is a nicely presented book with blue buckram binding inside a sturdy blue buckram slipcase. Modern publishers do not know how lucky they are not having to deal with a long-hand multiply corrected original work such as this!











An index of the other illustrated reviews in the "Folio Archives" series can be viewed here.

2ExLibrisDavid
feb 16, 2023, 10:42 pm

Excellent write up and photos as always! I'd never heard of the 2004 version, looks really interesting. Thanks for sharing!

3CarltonC
feb 17, 2023, 3:11 am

As ever, a wonderfully illustrated post.
Fun fact, I spotted the 2004 edition in an episode of the UK police detective TV series, Lewis. But not as funny as seeing Denzel Washington buy just one volume of the six volume 2000 FS edition of In Search of Lost Time in one of the Equaliser films.

4ian_curtin
feb 17, 2023, 3:34 am

Always like Brockway's work with FS.

>3 CarltonC: Great spots!

5NoBueno
feb 17, 2023, 3:37 am

I definitely prefer Brockway's dramatic and gruesome illustrations to Angela Barrett's softer "gothic romance" versions. This is a book about a doctor assembling a creature out of corpses, after all, and Brockway doesn't shy away from that.

6SF-72
feb 17, 2023, 5:31 am

I would add that the 2016 version has a softer cover than the one from 2004 and at least in my case, had a strong chemical smell. That's why I sold it and got the 2004 edition instead.

7assemblyman
feb 17, 2023, 6:12 am

I love the 2004 edition with the Brockway illustrations which is why the LE wasn't be of interest.

>3 CarltonC: I saw that Equaliser film about a month ago and had a chuckle when that scene came up.

8ubiquitousuk
feb 17, 2023, 8:21 am

Excellent review!

The 2004 edition is nice, but also quite expensive on the secondary market these days. Still, that will probably be the edition I buy in preference to the inevitable standard version of the LE because I like both the illustrations and the binding more.

Other editions people might consider are by Centipede Press, Arion Press, or The Limited Editions Club.