Searching For Dracula In Romania: What About Dracula? Romania's Schizophrenic Dilemma (Romania Explained To My Friends Abroad)

For a book that often clearly reminds the reader (intentionally or otherwise) that much of the text is a translation from an entirely different language, Searching For Dracula in Romania by Catalin Gruia is a surprisingly accessible read.By far, the best thing about the author's intensely interesting overview of the pop cultural cult of Dracula that has persisted around the world for more than a century now, is that it is written by a native Romanian, whose sole purpose is to provide non-Romanians with a more accurate understanding of the real historical character that has come (much to the chagrin of his present day countrymen who still revere the actual man's memory) to be so readily identified with the fictional vampire Count of Bram Stoker's immortal novel of the same name.This is a fun book, because it not only allows the reader to revel in the dark Gothic world of popular Dracula legend, but also provides a fair and mostly unbiased view of the real Vlad Tepes, national hero of Romania.

This is a short book, but then it is not expensive. I found it interesting and entertaining. This is the first place that I have found the story of the building of the hotel 'Dracula's Castle' at the top of the pass between Transylvania and Bucovina. I have passed this establishment a number of times while driving to my holiday home near Suceava, Bucovina, and often wondered how it got built in the Communist days. The schizophrenic Romanian attitude to the Dracula stories is very well described. I think this only appeals to a niche market, but it is excellent for that market.

The book is very interesting in that I have been researching my Transylvanian Saxon ancestors for the last ten years and have been traveling in Transylvania off and on for the last four years. Interestingly, while I had read lots of books about the Saxons (Siebenbuerger Sachsen) I had only recently read Dracula by Bram Stoker before my first trip to the village of my birth BISTRIZ. This is a great introductory book for both Dracula and Vlad. But having read this authors book on the Saxons I found that book to be a lot more interesting and more directly in line with my research on Genealogy and Genetic Migration.

A very interesting book and a quick read. It could have used another editing pass, but the information it contains is great android the point. I'm going on a trip to Romania in the fall and will see how the information holds up...

Love it

What a goofy little book. This "author" just put together some things he could read in the Encyclopedia Brittanica with reminiscences about some tourists he met and call it a book.

Very enjoyable and informative little book. I think it make for a great guide to Transylvania as well

If what you're looking for is an easy reading or a horror book, look somewhere else. This is a non-fiction book telling the story of the 2 Dracula - the historical Price and literal Count - while explaining Romania's schizophrenic dilemma: to transform Dracula into a tourism agent to cash in Western money, and at the same time being afraid not to barter away their true history.I was amazed to learn how Transylvania become the land of vampires and that the fusion between the fictional Count and the historic figure of the Prince Vlad Dracula began recently, in 1972, with the publishing of In Search of Dracula" by Radu Florescu and Raymond McNally who argued that Bram Stoker based his vampire on Prince Vlad.Personally I cannot agree more with the words of the former chair of The Dracula Society Quincey P. Morris of the US: "For us, Westerners, Dracula is fiction, a mere game. Actually, we are not very interested in your Vlad Tepes. It is not us who make the connection between the historical character and the vampire Count; it is you who keep telling us about Tepes when we come to visit the places mentioned in Bram Stoker's novel".I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants o learn more about vampires, Dracula and Romania!

This is a really interesting read whether you're a Dracula fan or not. I enjoyed the travel and tourist information as the writer described the journey through the different regions of Romania. There's some very helpful tips on where to stay, sights to visit & places to eat & drink in a thoroughly fascinating country. The history of Vlad Tepes is just as gripping as The Dracula story as is the glimpse of the modern Romania and its people. Definitely on my list of places I would love to visit!

Interesting little book. Probably fine on a kindle but I got the regular version. Easy read with good insights into Romanian legends, superstitions and history. NOTE - the entire text is included in the same authors book Romania Explained To My Friends Abroad which also seems to include his books on Saxons in Translyvania and on Gypsies in Romania. If you are interested in those topics plus other interesting bits about Romania you should buy that book instead.

Big print, few pages, low effort.