Dracula

New York: Barnes and Noble Books, 1996 Illustrated by Edward Gorey with eight full-page illustrations of Dracula characters, and other various smaller illustrations. Introduction and Appendices by Marvin Kaye. Signed limited edition ("The Definitive Edition"). One of 750 numbered copies (26 lettered copies were additionally produced) signed by Gorey on the limitation page, this being number 74. With a numbered lithograph (74/750) signed by Gorey, housed in a red cloth portfolio. Publisher's black cloth, with front board and spine lettered in silver foil, red, black, and white Gorey illustration of Dracula affixed to front board, and black and white pictorial endpapers; in publisher's black clamshell box, with black ribbons. Fine book; about fine box, with some dust soiling. Overall, a delightful edition of Bram Stoker's gothic masterpiece. Dracula is a Gothic horror novel by Bram Stoker, marking the literary debut of the vampire character Count Dracula. Written in epistolary format through a series of letters and journal entries, the story begins when the English solicitor Jonathan Harker visits Count Dracula at his castle in Transylvania to assist with a real estate transaction, unaware that the tall, charming gentleman poses him any threat. However, after haunting encounters with three undead women and Dracula himself, Harker finds that he has become a prisoner in the castle and narrowly escapes only after Dracula sets off on a journey to find new victims in England. Later, Harker combines forces with Professor Van Helsing and others in an effort to kill Dracula. In writing Dracula, Stoker employed the techniques of a number of genres, most prominently horror, but also invasion literature, which was popular in the British Empire in the late 19th century and was marked by symbolic portrayals of foreign enemies arriving in England. Though the book received only moderate critical acclaim upon publication, a film adaptation in 1931 starring Bela Lugosi propelled the story into the spotlight of popular culture. Now, Dracula is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential works of 19th century literature, with a legacy that continues to grow more than a century after its initial publication. Edward Gorey's association with Dracula began in the early 1970s, when he was approached to design the costumes and set for a theater production of the horror tale. Making its Broadway debut on October 20, 1977, the Gorey production was a huge success and ran for three years (925 performances). Gorey won a Tony Award for Best Costume Design, and the production won a Tony Award for Most Innovative Production of a Revival. The production also won two Drama Desk Awards - Outstanding Costume Design and Outstanding Set Design. Gorey's illustrations in this book first appeared in Dracula: A Toy Theater, The Sets and Costumes of the Broadway Production of the Play (1979). . Signed by Illustrator. Signed Limited Edition. Hard Cover. Fine.