Now that it's September, I had to start reading Gaston Leroux's The Phantom of the Opera. I'm going to see the opera based on the novel in October, and this time I'll be damned if I don't make sure I read the book beforehand. (I went to see a Dracula ballet last spring without reading the book and am still pissed.) I did the calculations and figured out that I need to read seven pages a day to have it read before the show.
So far, I've managed to keep up with the schedule.
Although reading only seven pages a day is frustrating at times. You see, the novel is quite good. Here are some initial observations about it.
- It's quite good. I said that already.
- Leroux's style of writing reminds me of H. P. Lovecraft's, even though one is French and the other American. Perhaps the similar genres and/or eras explain it, or perhaps the translator was a fan of the latter and decided to emulate his style. (Alas, my French isn't good enough to read the book in the original.)
- The Phantom seems like an interesting character.
- I love good old horror stories like Frankenstein and The Call of Cthulhu. Also anything by Poe. Also Kafka. Modern horror doesn't cut it for me. Luckily, The Phantom of the Opera was first published in 1909-1910, when authors were better at narrating than nowadays.
I'm confident that I end up loving the novel and that knowing the story before seeing the opera, I'll enjoy the opera more as well.
RK out.
P.S. I'm SO wearing a phantom mask to the event.
