Digesting “Dracula Daily”

Spoiler warning for events that take place in the book “Dracula”.

As Halloween approaches, iconic creatures such as Dracula and Frankenstein start appearing everywhere from cereal boxes to costumes. And thanks to “Dracula Daily”, the iconic vampire can appear in your emails.

I’ve never felt this much tension reading a book before. The email sends out the entries that took place that day, so you get to read the story in real time. When there were no entries from Jonathan Harker, I could feel the tension and could understand the stress of the other characters. I became immersed in the story.

This alternative way of enjoying a classic has changed my perception of events. I can better understand a character’s reactions because I’m on the journey with them. It’s caused the moments of tension to feel more tense as I wait for the next email. Reading the log of the “Demeter” as it sailed with Dracula on it became far more tragic, with small entries every day talking about the disappearing crew until there is no one left.

Reading about Lucy slowly falling ill and seeing other characters trying to stop the inevitable makes her death more painful. I have a better sense of how events connect because I’m reading them in chronological order, unlike when reading the book.

“Dracula Daily” has made reading a classic story about an iconic character more accessible. Being able to read the book in daily chunks has made it less daunting for me. Even though it’s not a long book, there’s a lot that happens, and events being out of order can get a little confusing.

I’m able to read “Dracula” on my phone, which allows me to easily take it anywhere. This accessibility can make it easier for people with busy lives to enjoy a classic story.

Lynn Spahr is a Hutchinson freshman in general studies.

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