Matilda

This novella has been overlooked, or forgotten, by many readers. It is a beautifully written, and oh so very Gothic, work of Romantic literature. I think it is Mary Shelley’s finest. The opening of the story brings you deep into the mind of Mathilda ..."I am in a strange state of mind. I am alone—quite alone—in the world—the blight of misfortune has passed over me and withered me; I know that I am about to die …”There is a ghostly luminescence going on within this story. I say this because of the dark presence that pervades but also the enlightenment that Mathilda finds through nature, art, flowers, sky and trees, and through the poet Woodville whom she finds enchanting. What is explored here, though, is the devastation of incest. And most fascinating is the perspective of Mathilda's father’s desires for his daughter. A torment for both of them.We can read this through the lens of Mary's life (psychobiographical?) or we can say this is fantasy, or even an unreliable narrator. However you read this novella, this is a story of isolation, loneliness, love, passion, an excess of madness, and death by suicide. Drama? Lots of it. Don't we love Mary Shelley’s exaggerated characters? Compelling? Absolutely. The suspense is like a wheel that spins slowly but mesmerizes so consistently you cannot take your eyes off it.Mathilda's attraction to solitude in her daily life breathes through this novella with a great deal of light and inspiration. And I daresay her attraction to her father captivates her. And captivates the reader. Surely a dark masterpiece. At the last page, I was left wondering if Mathilda will find peace. I so wished it for her. Paula Cappa is an avid book reviewer and an award-winning supernatural mystery author of novels and short stories.

Good novel

Well-written, gut-wrenching story of a girl's unfortunate life.

I really enjoyed this little black book. I've read Frankenstein and have wanted to read something else by her for a while. But other than her greatest creation, her lesser known ones are a bit harder to track down. Though luckily one doesn't have to travel to the arctic in search of it. So this recent, stand alone edition of her novella is very welcome.At this precise moment I've decided to study the Romantic period in general in greater detail. So having collected essays and collections of the individual poets, Wordsworth, Coleridge, Keats, Byron and of course Percy Shelley. Again, this edition of Mary's work has come at the perfect time for me to add to my study.And oh my, what an amazing book it is. Its sheer poetry in prose. Her use of language; her sentence structures; the imagery and emotion she creates is otherworldly. It makes reading such a delight.The work itself is a perfect piece of what Romatic literature is. The themes, the sentiments, the language all combine to create the perfect creation - no disfigured abominations here. If someone asked me what is Romanticism, I would answer; read Mary Shelley's Matilda.One point I would make, which might be controversial, is that though the second half of Matilda is a blatant eulogy to her poet-lover Percy and what a wonderful person he is, she is by far the superior artist. This book, imho, far outshines anything I have read of Percy Shelley's.

Estoy contenta. Son clásicos para iniciarse en lecturas para la lengua inglesa. Los precios de la editorial me han encantado. Había pensado comprar la box con la colección entera, pero en realidad no me interesaban todos. Aunque la portada parece que le databa tinta (a la impresion)