I Am Legend

Very different from the movie although it did have some similarities. There were a lot of words I didn’t recognize. I think because the book was written in the fifties. It got a little too technical for me but it was definitely an interesting read. Made you think.

After Dracula, I Am Legend is my favorite vampire novel. I first read it when I was twelve, and Ive reread it many times and enjoyed it every time. Yes, some of this enjoyment is nostalgia, but it is true sci-fi horror and very well done. The vampires are the result of a plague, and there is nothing romantic about them. They want Robert Nevilles blood. He manages to keep them at bay, tries to adapt to a new existence without going bonkers, and suffers from loneliness and angst because he believes he is the last original human alive, at least in his corner of the world. It has a real twist for an ending. Its a quick read, but well worth your time, and truer to the spirit of what vampires are really all about: day sleeping blood-suckers! Come on! Theyve tried to turn I Am Legend into a movie three times, with the first, the Vincent Price version, coming closest to the original. Dont get me wrong. You can enjoy the second, the Charlton Heston version, and even the third, the Will Smith version--I found this one less satisfying because of the CGI vampires--but if its such a classic, and it is, why cant they just make a faithful adaption of the original novel without turning it into something hardly recognizable? Read the book!!

Not a book that was hard to put down, after the first few chapters I simply read it because I bought it. This is a story that could have been so well done, yet its a hodge-podge of events all scrambled together, and not in a clever way. How many times did I have to read that the man was upset, throwing drinking glasses and digging his nails into his palms? Two thirds of the book deal with the mans emotions, which I simply dont care to read about, and the ending sucks.

I Am legend is a classic science fiction/horror novel written in 1954 by Richard Matheson. It is a story written in a post-apocalyptic setting. The hero is what appears to be a lone survivor of the disaster and is having to deal with the results thereof. I have read that this book has served as inspiration to many of the zombie books and movies from just after it was written through the modern era. While Im sure that many will have seen the Will Smith movie version of this book, please do not expect the book to be precisely like the movie. I was torn as how to rate this book. From a classical perspective I would rate it a five, but when I compare it books that I have really enjoyed from the modern era I would rate it a three. Neither is fair so I have compromised and given it a four. It is a definite read if you are into reading the classics. I would highly recommend to anyone who is into the science fiction/horror genres. I was always puzzled by the title of this book. However, on the last page it becomes crystal clear. Happy reading to all!

Of course, most of us have seen the film I am Legend starring Will Smith. I liked most of the movie well enough, but wasnt very satisfied with the ending, so I thought I would give the book it was based on a try. Robert Neville is the sole survivor of a plague that has transformed the population into vampire-like creatures. Set in a California suburb in the mid seventies, this book chronicles Roberts daily activities of survival and understanding of the disease. He spends his days refortifying his home, restocking supplies, and exterminating any hibernating infected he comes across. By night, he hunkers down inside his home while the infected swarm outside, reminiscing about his deceased family, and studying the disease. He lives this way for several years when he encounters a woman out during the day, alone and wandering the town. Desperate for companionship, he makes a decision that changes everything and goes after her. The beginning of the book is very interesting. The reader is intrigued by what has happened that led to the current events of the story. The history behind the plague is revealed in bits and pieces, hooking the reader along. Roberts personal losses to the plague make the story much more compelling. The reader learns the nature of the disease alongside Robert, who is no doctor or scientist and after observation and trial and error, comes to his own conclusions about the plague. The final third of the book slows down a lot. By this point, all that there is to learn about the disease has been revealed and all the reader is left with is Robert and his loneliness, his own dehumanization as he lives in solitude. The book ends differently than the film, but is not really any better. The story was an okay read, but I feel I overpaid for it, especially for how old the story is. The story wasnt as good as I had hoped it would be. If you can acquire this book for free or for fairly cheap, then I would recommend it. But at the current kindle price of nearly six dollars, it is too much for a mediocre story.

I wanted to enjoy this novella more, but it didnt engage me enough to keep me turning the pages. I would put the book down for weeks and then pick it up again, read a bit more, and repeat the cycle. Sometimes the story bogs down trying to give a scientific explanation for the vampirism at the center of the book. This tedious attempt to take what at first seems like a supernatural phenomenon and show that it instead is due to pathogens is the same problem the second Japanese Ring movie had. It strips away a sense of mystery and wonder of uncanny, frightening, and poorly understood things. In addition, as other reviewers have noted, the scientific explanations dont entirely fit together, so whats the point of all the pseudo-scientific hokum anyway? The novella is restricted almost entirely to the lonely protagonists inner life, but the character is too generic to generate much human interest, and there isnt enough action to compensate. Its too bad the last man alive wasnt more beguiling. Nonetheless, the story takes some interesting twists and turns and creates an effective apocalyptic atmosphere that makes it a pioneering work for 1954 in the vampire genre. One bonus is that Matheson was writing long before stories about vampires became fodder for teen culture--his is a story for adults. Also, I appreciate that Matheson tackles the subject of normalcy vs. monstrosity and questions deep assumptions about the inherent value and superiority of humanity. One peculiarity of the story is that the vampires behave more like zombies than vampires of lore. Their vampire behavior relates to some of their limitations (e.g., their inability to be exposed to daylight, aversion to garlic, etc.), but otherwise they are like zombies roaming the nighttime landscape. The book is a mixed bag, but its literary strengths make it more than just another horror story.

This book suffers from what I like to call Fake Science-itus. The Martian had a similar issue, where the book would spend pages go on and on and on about how their sci-fi science & chemistry works. Bruh, I dont need a lecture on how your fake science works, youre putting me to sleep here.

Im usually not one of those people that reads the book AFTER seeing the movie, but this was the case for this particular story. I seen the Will Smith version and was somewhat confused as not much was explained correctly. It was all too extreme with the way the movie portrays it. The book (or rather short story) is really a fascinating dive into the brain of the last survivor of a vampiric plague. It really makes you feel like that last person siting there, while reading in bed imagining Vampires bouncing bricks off your house. The different moods the main character goes through in his daily routine. Only thing I didnt like was the ending, but not for the reason that it ends, but that because after I flipped to the main page and continued reading 5-6 more pages before I realized I was reading ANOTHER short story. This cover makes no mention of short storys it just finishes the I am legend one and continues into another, and another, and another. So it left me confused if THAT was it? that was the ending? But then I got pissed off because I kept reading and was confused by other short stories. I cant say I really enjoyed the other ones tho, I bought this book for I am Legend.

Including by me. I did not think the genre has a right to exist. I thought Stoker said all that needs to be said. Then came this book, some 50 years ago, and combined the vampire theme with the end of the world genre and created a strong story in its own right. In its simplicity and clarity it has a chance to be a long-term survivor. Well, typical vampire. I had watched the recent movie and liked it, and this way I learned about the book, which an AF recommended to me. I picked it up for a long distance flight and started reading early in the flight. Then I noticed it was on offer in the video system (one of Lufthansa Business Class strong features), both in the new version with Smith, which I knew already, and in the older one with Charlton Heston. Since the man just died, I was tempted to try the movie, but found it not worth the effort. It is a wooden pointless aged product without merits. (While the Will Smith version is likeable.) So back to the book. Its hero Neville is a soulmate of mine, a hermit. He also calls himself a Robinson (this for my critic who blamed me for that comparison im my film review.) Neville is not a scientist, but tries to understand what happened, why mankind has been seemingly eradicated by a plague and why the dead have become vampires unless burned. His fight against despair, lonelyness, alcohol, suicide, vampires, cluelessness makes it a very strong piece of storytelling.

Ive wanted to read this book for years because I loved The Last Man on Earth (1964) with Vincent Prlce. And surprisingly, the film adaptation was somewhat close (minus a few details of course). Robert Neville is a seemingly capable survivor of a sort of plague-driven apocalypse. The twist is, the plague turns the victims into zombie-esque vampires. Robert is immune but haunted by the loss of his beloved family. Whats truly chilling in both the book and aforementioned movie is Robert is not forgotten by the undead others. His neighbors and an old friend visit his house every night in an attempt to get him, throwing rocks and calling out his name. Yeah...creepy for sure. I loved the source material even though some parts dragged a smidge. Robert was a hard character to like, especially when he was drinking. But, his depression and rage are understandable...all the more frightening because that could happen to anyone in his shoes. Frustrated, sad but enraged, achingly lonely, and resentful of the world for leaving him like this - alone and scared. I recommend this book for fans of vampires, zombies, and post-apocalyptic tales. I also highly recommend Vincent Price in The Last Man on Earth, as his performance channels that deep angst so compellingly. Richard Matheson was a legend himself as this haunting tale continues to prove.