I Am Legend

I bought this a few months ago, before the movie came out, although it had been on my wish list forever. I read Hell House years ago and it was one of my favorite horror novels, so Ive wanted to read I Am Legend for a long time. I read it before the movie came out, but the movie was so different that it really didnt matter. The book was written in the early 1950s and I think it was pretty innovative for that time. Apparently it was first marketed as sci-fi, and only later became known as a horror classic. Robert Neville is - he believes - the sole survivor of some kind of worldwide plague that has killed off most of humanity, and doomed a small portion of it to a vampiric, raging, bloodthirsty existence. For some reason Robert is immune to the disease for reasons he doesnt understand, and everyone he ever knew and loved is either dead or stalking him. The atmosphere is very tense right from the beginning, when were introduced to the horrible simplicity of Roberts everyday survival: wake up, re-fortify the protections on his house, go out and hunt for supplies, kill a few vampires to lessen their appalling numbers, get home before sundown, eat from his dwindling food supplies, and then wait, with dread and fear, until nightfall when the others come and torment him from outside, all night long. His alone-ness is stark and terrifying, and you feel the kind of deadened desperation he must live with as someone who has nothing to live for, yet cant allow himself to die. The book is very short - a novella, really - and ends much more ambiguously than the the movie. Even if youve seen the movie, I recommend the book. It has quite a different feel to it.

There were too many details when there didnt need to be and not enough when they needed it. Good concept though.

A plague has wiped out humanity and left vampiric creatures in its wake. Robert Neville, a former factory worker, is the sole surviving human being as far as he knows. He spends each night barricaded in his home with vampires outside his door calling for him to come out. During the day, he fortifies his home, kills vampires, and even researches the cause of the plague. Neville is obsessed with explaining what has happened in rational, scientific terms and discovers a bacteria that appears to be the root of the problem. His struggles to stay alive and find a purpose for his life form the crux of the story. I Am Legend has been cited as influential by virtually every horror writer, but you should not expect to find a classic horror story here. The first third actually conforms pretty closely to the norm with some harrowing moments, but then the book focuses much more on Nevilles research, his attempt to befriend a dog, his state of mind, etc. The ending is more of an ironic social satire than it is a climax to the story. None of this is to suggest that the novel is not worth reading, it certainly is. Just dont pick it up expecting a thrill ride of scares because youll be severely disappointed. For those who have seen the movie

Wow, what a story, complete with an unexpected twist in the end.. I haven’t seen Will Smith’s movie of the same name, but it sounds like a typical Hollywood treatment of a story that already has two other movies based on it. To expect the MC of the book to behave like a heroic character in a 2007 movie does the book an incredible disservice. The MC has faced horrors enough to result in a major traumatic stress syndrome. To face the distinct possibility of being the last person on earth not affected by a bacteria which has turned everyone else into vampires- both the dead and a not quite living. These are not glamorous “Twilight” vampires, but more like the creatures from Bram Stokers novel, with similar powers and weaknesses. One or two are people Robert Neville, the main character, knew before they were infected. Now every night they gather outside his barricaded house and try to entice him outside. Initially, Robert drinks himself into oblivion every night. As the book progresses the things has gone through are revealed- I’ll try to avoid spoilers here, but the MC’s actions are understandable. He also is trying to figure out how the plague spread. Not a trained scientist, he makes use of daylight hours when the vampires are hiding from the sunlight to take books from the library and try to understand. He also actively seeks out the vampires who are weak and lethargic in the daytime and kills them, initially with wooden stakes which were mentioned in Brampton Stoker’s Dracula. The MC has an electric generator to power his home and especially keep food from spoiling. He also has a car which he keeps maintained so he can drive to half destroyed supermarkets for food, as well as ammunition. The vampires cannot be killed by bullets, but it slows them down when the MC is in a tight spot. I had to take a break from reading about halfway as the story is really intense. If you approach the novel as the original, written half a century before the movie of the same name, before Anne Rice’s novels and tough movie heroes who can handle almost anything, the MC becomes more understandable, having gone through the collapse of civilized society.

The book and the movie share only a few details in common. The most obvious shared attribute is the title. The differences are almost staggering; Los Angeles/New York, Caucasian male/African-American male, blue collar/white collar, etc. The story is roughly 160 pages long, although there are ten short stories that follow: Buried Talents, The Near Departed, Prey, Witch War, Dance of the Dead, Dress of White Silk, Mad House, The Funeral, From Shadowed Places, and Person to Person. If you are purchasing the book because you like the movie you may feel cheated that the movie is merely based on the book, rather than a direct cinematic interpretation. The book is a great (and a quick) read, told by the perspective of Robert Neville, a man feared to be the sole survivor of the human race. The beginning, however, seems to be drawn out and the word choice is less than sophisticated. Thankfully, as the story progresses so does the word choice. If you love stories based on the appeal of the last man, or on the decline of society, then this book would be to your liking. Matheson also takes a new spin on vampire lore, which was one of the reasons this book appealed to me (the other being that it was a required text for a class). Although better vampires stories exist, this book is worth the read for any vampire enthusiast and highly recommended.

This is a fantastic novella from a brilliant writer. It was way ahead of its time and Matheson inspired so many giants in the horror field, including Stephen King. This book in particular is one of the main contributing forces that gave rise to the zombie genre. I wouldnt say this is a literary masterpiece so much as an amazing story that is solidly written. The premise is dazzling and it kept me turning the pages. I will refrain from giving it the fifth star because some of Nevilles thinking got a touch repetitive for me and I was actually a little confused about what constituted a (WARNING, mild spoiler) vampire or another kind of undead type of vampire being that isnt quite a vampire. I honestly cant spoil it too bad because I dont clearly understand that part. One of the things I really enjoyed about this book was that I have seen two film versions of I Am Legend and this still felt original. I think its because the main character is a truly human character. We get a front row seat to those flaws in the book and we get to do it as he battles vampires from a last man on earth perspective. It was a fun read. I will try more of Mathesons written work. (He also wrote many screenplays.)

Reviewing a classic is rather strange for me. Its like reviewing Oliver Twist, when almost everyone knows what its about, due to movies, TV show references, and most recently in commercials urging kids to use manners. When people think of I Am Legend , they usually dont know its a book, and just know its a post apocalyptic movie where most of the population has been mutated into vampires, and Will Smith is the last man standing, blah, blah, blah. The movie was great, I admit it. But that was before I read the book. And like every other movie supposedly based on I Am Legend, like The Last Man On Earth and the very horrendous The Omega Man, the movies seem to exclude many of the main points that make the novel so great. I hope they actually make an accurate movie based on the book someday. Richard Matheson deserves a better movie adaption. Ok, now enough about the movie and on to the book. The book is set in the late 1970s. The world was decimated by a horrible virus, that turns men and animals into vampires. Robert Neville, the last man, as far as he knows, is fighting to survive. The book deals mainly with Roberts internal struggle with insanity, which Matheson handles beautifully. I dont want to spoil the main points, so I urge you to read the book. :) Overall, I give the book 5 out of 5 stars! Available in most eBook formats and in print.

Listen- if you could take away the corny vampires wiggling outside the house, Robert Neville’s almost annoying horniness, and the “I was loving you bit.” I would’ve said this was a great book. Upon re-read, I can say I no longer HATE it as I did the first time. However, I just cannot get past the vampires and their seduction~

I liked the story I Am Legend well enough, but its only the first 170 pages of this book. There are ten short stories after I Am Legend, half of which I gave one or two stars to. I gave the other short stories four or five stars. I Am Legend has been made into at least three movies that I know of. The Omega Man (1971) is my favorite version. The first movie, The Last Man on Earth (1964) had zombies that were too weak and slow moving to be believable and I Am Legend (2007) had zombies that were too strong and fast to be believable. They could crawl on ceilings like bugs, which was so unbelievable I laughed. Im always reading some good fantasy or science fiction. This month Im rereading my favorite five military sci-fi classics: Starship Troopers by Robert A. Heinlein (1959), The Forever War by Joe Haldeman (1974), Armor by John Steakley (1984), Enders Game by Orson Scott Card (1985), and Old Mans War by John Scalzi (2005). If you like reading try some of my favorite fantasy and sci-fi authors: Richard Adams, Palo Bacigulupi, Suzanne Collins, Abe Evergreen, Diana Gabaldon, Hugh Howey, George Martin, Brandon Sanderson, John Scalzi, and Andy Weir. If you’re looking for good stuff to watch consider miniseries like The Astronauts Wives Club (2015), Band of Brothers (2001), Frank Herbert’s Dune (2000), Frank Herbert’s Children of Dune (2003), Into the West (2005), Lonesome Dove (1989), Manhattan (2014-2015), Return to Lonesome Dove (1993), Pride and Prejudice (1995), Taken (2002) and The 10th Kingdom (2000), which are all terrific because they have clear beginnings that establish an objective, then strong middles and conclusive endings where the goal is achieved, like a good novel. Other shows I’ve really enjoyed include Battlestar Galactica (2004-2009), Breaking Bad (2008-2013), Cowboy Bebop (1998), Firefly (2002), Game of Thrones (2011-2019), Granite Flats (2013-2015), The IT Crowd (2006-2013), Jericho (2006-2008), Merlin (2008-2012), The Prisoner (1967-1968), Rome (2005-2007), Spartacus: Gods of the Arena (2011), Spartacus: Blood and Sand (2010), Stargate: SG-1 (1997-2007), Stargate: Atlantis (2004-2009), Star Trek (1966-1969), Star Trek Voyager (1995-2001), and The Tudors (2007-2010). I didn’t list any contemporary series I’m following that don’t have an end date yet, not conducive to binge watching from beginning to finish.

This haunting and original 1955 science fiction novel started the modern post-apocalyptic vampire genre. It is called the first modern vampire novel and influenced the zombie genre as well. However, the movie with Will Smith is at best loosely inspired by it. I fear many people will not read the book because they have seen this or one of the other movies inspired by the novel. That would be a shame. The novel has roots in science fiction and has spawned dozens of other books and movies. Three movie adaptations were directly inspired by it,