Taphophilia.(dot) Com - Tale of Frankenstein author and poet is tragic, haunting and mostly true

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Tale of Frankenstein author and poet is tragic, haunting and mostly true

Written by DeadGirl
Sunday, 23 July 2006
ANGELMONSTER By Veronica Bennett Candlewick Press, $15.99, 240 pp. THE FLINT JOURNAL FIRST EDITION July 23, 2006 By Carol Azizian If Mary Shelley lived in the 20th or 21st century, her affair with the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley would have been tabloid fodder. But because Shelley, who wrote "Frankenstein," lived in the 19th century, the consequences of her affair were scandalous and tragic. Mary was 16 when she deserted her family for a life with the mercurial poet, who was 21 at the time. She was shunned by her father, stepmother and English society. In her young adult novel, "Angelmonster," author Veronica Bennett creates a realistic portrait of the writer's ecstasy and agony - her passion for Shelley, their seemingly carefree lifestyle roaming Europe and the tragedies that ensue, including the deaths of three of their four children and the suicides of one of her sisters and his wife. Shelley's parents were free-thinkers - her mother, Mary Wollstonecraft, was a feminist who died only days after Shelley was born and her father, William Godwin, a philosopher and bookshop owner. Her first reaction after meeting the charismatic Shelley in her father's bookshop is that of a giddy teenager: "Like a god. Like an angel. Like every hero in every romance you have ever read," she gushes to her sister Jane, who joins them in their life of abandon. The romance between Mary and Percy will no doubt appeal to teens, as will the melodrama of their lives together. Though there are no explicit sex scenes, this novel probably is more appropriate for older teens than younger ones. It's engrossing even for adults, especially those who know little about this period in history. But, as Bennett explains, she took some liberties with the true story. For instance, in "Angelmonster," Mary doesn't complete her novel until her relationship with Shelley ends. "In fact, it was published in 1818, when she was 20 years old and had been married to him for a little more than a year," the author wrote. Literature buffs will find allusions to the poets Coleridge, Keats and Lord Byron intriguing. The references also may inspire young readers to delve into their poetry. Lord Byron, in particular, is depicted as a womanizer and hedonist who befriends Mary and Percy and has an affair with Jane (by this time, she's changed her name to Claire). In a haunting scene at Lord Byron's villa in Switzerland, she conceives the idea for the world's most famous monster. Though she never stops loving her husband - they marry after Percy's wife commits suicide - his restlessness and infidelity (Mary suspects that he's had an affair with her sister) drive a wedge between the couple. He becomes her angel/monster. Those who are only familiar with film and TV's re-imagining of "Frankenstein" will be enriched by the story of the monster's creator. http://www.mlive.com/entertainment/fljournal/index.ssf?/base/features-0/1153650198293470.xml&coll=5&thispage=2

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Taphophilia?

taphophilia (taf′ō-fil′ē-ă)

ORIGIN:
From the Greek words taphos, meaning "tomb" or "sepulcher" and philia, meaning "attraction or affinity to something, in particular the love or obsession with something"

DEFINITION: 1. An excessive interest in graves and cemeteries. 2. A love or fondness for funerals, graves, and cemeteries. 3. In psychiatry, a morbid attraction to graves and cemeteries