The Phantom of the Opera Book by Gaston Leroux

 Phantom of the Opera Book

I was looking for something fun to read while on the bus to NYC and ended up with The Phantom of the Opera which was quite fitting. I was staying near Times Square and there were signs everywhere for the musical version of Phantom. Since I have never seen the musical, the book was completely new to me.

The first thing I noticed was that it reminded me a lot of the last book I read, Dracula by Bram Stoker in that they were both seemingly about creepy dead guys who terrorize people! The difference is that the Phantom (aka Opera Ghost or O.G. as he signs his letters) is a much more sympathetic character than Dracula.

While I couldn’t wait for Dracula to get a wooden stake through his heart, I found myself often rooting for O.G. in Phantom. He was a nice, polite, smart guy who’s major problem was that he was born hideously ugly! Certainly not his fault. (As an aside, I couldn’t help but think that the first description of him sounded very much like…Michael Jackson!)

The Opera Ghost just wanted someone to love who loved him back.  Sure, maybe he didn’t quite go about it the right way, but since nobody could look at him without barfing, he didn’t have many options! I actually liked him a lot better than the story’s hero, Raul.  O.G. had way more character.

This was another classic book that was an easy and enjoyable read, which I heartily recommend. I am definitely going to have to get tickets to the show next time I’m in NYC!

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