5thCLASS_1_96_jg:Layout 1 5/3/12 17:37 Page 66


Monstersandvampires


1. What is the scariest book you’ve ever read? Talk about it. 2. Make a list of all the spooky words you can think of.


BramStoker Bram Stoker, author of the chilling story, Dracula, was born in Clontarf, Dublin in 1847. Bram, short for Abraham, was ill for a long time as a child and his mother used to tell him stories to cheer him up. It is said that she particularly enjoyed gruesome stories and she evidently passed on this interest to her son.


Stoker studied for a number of years at Trinity College, Dublin, and while there he showed a keen interest in drama and sport. After leaving university, he took up a job with the Civil Service in Dublin Castle. His main interest, however, was in theatre and writing. He wrote a drama column for a Dublin newspaper in the 1870s. In 1878, Stoker left Dublin for London where he became secretary to his great acting idol, Henry Irving. He managed Irving’s theatre, The Lyceum.


Dracula While in London, Stoker continued with his writing. He wrote about 18 books in all, but his name will be forever linked to his most famous book, Dracula, which was published in 1897. The book is a horror masterpiece which tells the story of the ghoulish Count Dracula, a Transylvanian vampire, who feeds nightly on the blood of humans. There has been much speculation as to where Stoker got the inspiration for his eerie tale. It is thought that he may have got the idea from reading about a bloodthirsty Romanian who lived in the 1400s. His name was Vlad Dracul!


Bram Stoker died in London in 1912, but his memory is very much alive today. His great novel has been translated into many languages and has inspired over 1,000 films, plays and books, as well as Ireland’s first Gothic Art exhibition, which was held in Dublin Castle in 1999. The Bram Stoker International Summer School has been held annually in his native Clontarf since 1990. The summer school celebrates his life and works.


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