I Am Legend

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Summary: Legends
Review: In a time when humankind has become almost a legend, there is only one. One who lives in infamy. At first they were the few infamous predators of the night, stalking the living to kill, the Angels of Death, the vampires. Now he is the one infamous predator of the day, stalking the dead to kill again. Robert Neville is the last of his race. The final human on a world of vampires. Alone in the night, in the day, in life, he has nothing left but the fight to preserve humankind. By day, he is the hunter, the predator, seeking the undead to destroy. By night, he is the hunted, the prey, hiding in his barricaded home from the sure death awaiting him on the outside. Robert has only the "righteous cause" of killing and surviving to drive him onward. He has no real hope, no real purpose. Only more garlic and stakes; killing the defenseless as they slumber. He fights a world that has already changed entirely from the one he knew. In its place, there arose a bleak, apocalyptic world of blood, dust, and death. In this new world, Robert is the last, greatest murderer. He lives in infamy. He says himself in the end, "I am legend." How long before one man fighting the entire world is defeated? How long before a legend is destroyed?

Rating:
Summary: Very good story.....lousy ending.
Review: Good writing style, but lousy ending, particularly when the book ends halfway and you are left with short tales that I, at first, thought were a continuation of the novel. While there are always vampires outside the hero's house, you only get one good vampire/hero encounter...The woman leader of the new society is bizarre to say the least and the only person the reader gets to meet from the new society. The story has much potential (I find myself building on the story), but the author lacked the ability to spin out a good ending.

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Summary: The vampire terminator
Review: "I Am Legend" tells the story of Robert Neville, who is the only person left unchanged after a plague has reduced the rest of humanity to dim-witted semi- vampires or full vampires. The semi's are easy to kill; the true ones must be staked. Neville is obsessed with clearing his area of both types. He eventually discovers that the plague germs have mutated ( this lends the book a present-day relevance! ). But he cannot change his ways, and continues to be a 'serial killer'. The consequences are not entirely unexpected. Another reviewer was dismayed at the forthcoming Ridley Scott-Arnold Schwarzenegger movie. But Scott is a highly talented director who gave us "Alien" and "Blade Runner" and Arnold seems to be diversifying his style. Their movie should, at the very least, be the best-made of the three ( the others are "The Last Man On Earth" and "The Omega Man" ).

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Summary: Successful Recreation of a Powerful Myth.
Review: Picture this: a weird, half-crazed lonesome guy spends most of his time killing as much members of a society as he can in the most gruesome manner. He moves swiftly, mercilessly, doing his job at a time when his victims are most vulnerable. He's considered an aberration, the only one of his kind in the world, living alone in a kind of fortress. He's rightly considered by this society as an evil monstruosity that must be exterminated at all costs.
Well, if my description of this creature could very well fit Count Dracula, it's no coincidence, but I'm talking about Robert Neville, the tormented hero of "I Am Legend ". Neville is the only human being left in a world inhabited by vampires, and the beauty of Matheson's book resides in this reversion of roles. The monstruosity here isn't the vampire, but the human, now turned into a predator to this society of vampires. How does he feel, this lonely human? How does he come to terms with the ethical and moral problems of killing these intelligent creatures ? What is being human?What is being normal?? Those are some of the questions put foward by Matheson in this wonderful book, in wich he recreates a powerful myth for the modern times, giving new form to the Outsider. Be prepared: the Outsider in this one is all of us...

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Summary: Most believeable and frightening Fiction int 50 years
Review: The movie, Omega Man, based on the book proves once again the old adage that no matter how good the movie and the actors, it can't do justice to the orginal book. Anyone who has an interest in possible results of mans disregard of the environment will marvel at the way this story unfolds. A must for readers of all ages.

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Summary: Awesome
Review: This story actually made me react to it instead of me just reading it. The other stories in this book are good, but aren't even memorable compared to "I Am Legend".

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Summary: One of the finest horror stories ever written....
Review: Anyone who has seen the two filmed versions of this fine novel, "Last Man on Earth" with Vincent Price and "The Omega Man" With Charlton Heston, are in for a treat. This novel easily surpasses these films, and I suspect it will surpass the remake currently in pre-production. Matheson masterfully weaves the psychological torture of isolation and the gothic horror of of a good old fashioned vampire story into an unbelievable tapestry of terror and pity. The ending is a true classic. Even if you are not a fan of the genre, I implore you READ THIS BOOK! - you will not be disappointed.

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Summary: ever heard the song by "White Zombie"?
Review: This book was excellent, I didn't put it down until I was done. Robert Nevil is the last human on the planet earth. Everyone else that knows he's alive wants a piece of him. Everyone else is a vampier bent on having a Nevil sandwich for a late night snack. I had no idea that the "White Zombie" song "I Am Legend" was based on this book (well partly this book and partly the movie adaption called "The Omega Man". "Terminate another no one is my brother yeah the sun shines on me" sound familiar? It's talking about Robert Nevil being the only human left (no one is my brother) and how he is the only person able to go outside durring the day. There are lots of other parts in the song that are directly from the movie. Weather your into this type of book, or this type of music READ THIS BOOK RIGHT NOW.

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Summary: More than just vampires
Review: Hang on kids, here's a comment that will take you off guard. If you get beyond the vampires in this book, you will discover an excellent allegory about social morals and majoritarian politics. Here's the real question Matheson posits in the book: is there no way to determine good and evil other than on the basis of what the majority thinks?

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Summary: best post-apoc vampire novel written
Review: Matheson, noted author of novels, shortstories and screenplays (Twilight Zone, etc) brings you into a vampiric world easily recognizable to any baby-boomer.
It is Matheson's humanity thru the main character that pulls the reality(sic) along at an absorbing pace.
Known best perhaps for his "Shrinking Man" and "Somewhere in Time" novels-made-movies, this is Matheson at his best.
It is less a vampiric novel, more a social-commentary of "the ordinary man in extra-ordinary circumstances". READ THE BOOK! Forget the movies (Price or Heston)!
You'll return to it again and again.
If you want Matheson in an excellant, small bite, search out the short story (also Zone episode) "Little Girl Lost"; though rare and hard to find in a collection, it's worth the hunt. I AM LEGEND will make you sad when finished to realize this gifted 50's writer writes no more!