Choice 评论
In this ambitious and readable volume, Hughes (Bath Spa Univ. College) explores the cultural context of Stoker's fiction in an attempt to re-evaluate the critical significance of this prolific author. Although Hughes devotes much of the final chapter to Dracula, the book covers the entire range of Stoker's fiction--including some works little known to contemporary readers (indeed some remain out of print). For example, he attempts to place Stoker's work in the context of popular theology while providing readings of Under the Sunset (Stoker's collection of short stories for children) and The Jewel of the Seven Stars. In later chapters, he examines the depiction of masculinity and blood as a signifier in Victorian and Edwardian fiction. Probably the most valuable chapter is Hughes's discussion of feminine sexuality in several of Stoker's novels, among them The Snake's Pass, Miss Betty, and The Man. These careful readings of Stoker's lesser-known works constitute its major difference from David Glover's Vampires, Mummies, and Liberals (CH, Feb'97), a book with similar aims. Beyond Dracula is meticulously grounded in Stoker and horror scholarship, and throughout Hughes writes with clarity and wit. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty. R. D. Morrison; Morehead State University