Amanda Villarreal
12/18/2014
English 1B
Barstow Community College

My Journey with Dracula
Literature is truly an art that is seen through an individual’s own lens. When I first started this class I was a bit intimidated because I have always struggled with reading literature that was not of my choosing. The first week of class really helped me because I was given different strategies on how to be a successful reader. I found that the strategies that helped me the most was having a pencil ready a jot down notes as I read and committing myself to reading with comprehension.
When Stoker’s Dracula arrived in the mail I was not too excited as I had already judged the book by the cover… literally. I had jumped to conclusions and thought that it would be in some type of language that I would need a dictionary to use to understand. I am an avid reader and I prefer to read verse watch television. However, Dracula was not on the list of books that I am interested in reading. I looked at week one of the course, the first discussion board looked easy enough and did not require me reading the book required for the course. Week two on the other hand would be impossible to complete if I did get to reading.
I opened the novel and gazed at the first page. After a moment I remembered what I wrote about in week one’s discussion board. I had to discipline myself and focus. I grabbed a pen and a pad of paper to jot down my notes. I told myself that I could get through this book and that I