I Am Legend

Rating:
Summary: Imaginative genius
Review: Matheson has been quoted as saying, "... when I lived in New York, I watched Dracula, the old Lugosi Dracula, at a motion picture theater, and it just occurred to me that if one vampire was frightening, then a whole world of vampires would really be frightening." _I Am Legend_ is about a hard-drinking family man, Robert Neville, apparently the last living human being -- everyone else has been turned into vampires by 'bacillus vampiris' after an atomic or biological war, who lives in a house fortified against the nightly onslaughts of an army of the undead, including his next-door neighbor-ghoul, Ben Cortman, who keeps yelling, "Come out, Neville!" The suspenseful creepiness begins with the first sentence of the book: "On those cloudy days, Robert Neville was never sure when sunset came, and sometimes they were in the streets before he could get back." You just know that eventually he is not going to make it back inside his house in time. The first half of the tale describes Neville's mundane existence: eating, drinking, listening to classical music, hanging garlic bulbs on his outside walls, driving stakes into vampires during the day, going to the library to read about bacterial diseases, etc. In the second half, things happen -- Matheson had to come up with an ending, but like most horror stories, the conclusion is not as satisfying as you might wish. Ten short stories are also included in this book, including most notably "Prey" about a doll that comes to life and attacks a woman in her apartment, and "Person to Person" about a man who receives telephone calls in his head from maybe (?) his subconscious. Matheson is an imaginative genius; Google him and see his long list of writing accomplishments and the many movies made from them. _I Am Legend_ was first published in 1954, long before derivative works like Romero's Night of the Living Dead and the Resident Evil video games and movie.

Rating:
Summary: I stand speechless
Review: This is such a outstanding book. It is completely original and told in a unique way. The story is also keep short and this also was the right thing to do. I mean you can only go so long with a story about the only human left on the planet. Be forewarned this is without a doubt the darkest story I have ever read. This is not bad, on the contrary it really gives the story an atheneic feel. You really feel like you are there, like your looking through his eyes. Wow, how depressing and frightning.

If you like horror and want to read something completely original in every aspect then by all means find a copy and enjoy the ride.

Rating:
Summary: Great buy, Awesome story
Review: Richard Matheson's style phenomenal. I picked up this book looking for a good vampire book, and got way more than that. The story is absolutely fantastic. The characters are very deep and are constantly developing. A deep look into all the emotions somebody would go thru being a complete outcast, last man on earth. Lots of cool stuff, very complete and full. Hits on all the emotions a book like this should. Very well written.

Robert Deville is the last man on earth, everyone else is vampires. He holes up in his house during the day, drinking, listening to music, trying to stay sane. At night these vampires come out and beat upon his house, thirsty as hell for his blood.

I would definatly recommend this book to anyone looking for a good read.

Exciting, dark, terrifying, classic =)

Rating:
Summary: Great Read
Review: This story is the most brillant book every written about vampires , but it is not really about vampires. It's about being an outcast in a society. The book is difficult to categorize, it is not really horror, not really suspense but it has many aspects of each type of story.
It very easy to see how Matheson inspired many of the horror we like today like King.

Rating:
Summary: Don't forget the other stories.
Review: I am legend is great, propably the second best vampire novel since Dracula. I just want to mention the other (short/er) stories in this anthology. Alot of reviewers only talk about "I am Legend". I can understand that; since it is the title story and the longest story of this anthology. But, in my opinion, the story "Dance of the Dead" is far greater. It alone is worth the price of this anthology. It has the dystopian atmosphere of "A clockwork orange" and the nightmarish visual themes of the great J.G.Ballard. Only a master writer can get that mix within 17 pages (and before Anthony Burgess and J.G.Ballard).

Rating:
Summary: 50 years later, and this book STILL beats King!
Review: Published in 1954, this book tells the sad, spooky tale of the last man on earth, Robert Neville. For your own sake, do not read this book alone at night! I have read Stephen King, watched George Romero and no one has scared the bajeezus out of me like Matheson can.

Rating:
Summary: I am Bored
Review: Average storyline from the 1950's, taken from existential plays, Matheson's writing style doesn't really seem important enough to give us an edge towards the book. All the character does is "drink all day and smoke". He seems to have left the book awhile before returning to the ending which seemed far fetched and absurd. Other stories in here include boring cliched type horror stuff that isnt really stimulating. This book would have been good if I was 14 but now it is just average.

Rating:
Summary: Swiss Family Matheson
Review: Only one guy left on earth, trying to survive. Should be boring, but it isn't. Instead the novel becomes a type of modern-day Crusoe as the main character tries, day by day, to improve his living conditions and gain more essential knowledge about the creatures that stalk him by night. As you can imagine, many things need to be taken care of to ensure this man stays alive; food must be procured, shelter must be protected, travel arranged, water source provided, etc. This isn't a vampire story; it's a story about survival. A story about survival with a totally awesome ending.