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Don’t you just love larger-than-life characters? The ones who jump off the page and grab you? Whether you love them or hate them, you can’t be indifferent to them.
I would love to know about the characters who just won’t leave you! Most of you will probably post about how much you love (or loathe) each character, but this is a great place for the more creative ones among you to let go and have fun! Write yourself into a scene with Anne and Diana. Write a love poem in elvish for Aragorn. Draw a picture of Harry obliterating Voldemort. The possibilities are endless.
Be sure to post the book’s title and author, and be very careful not to give away spoilers while talking about how much you love your characters.
Mr. Linky will be posted here on The Introverted Reader every Thursday.
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| Vincent Price in the 1964 movie adaptation |
I Am Legend by Richard Matheson is a classic of the horror genre for a reason. For me, that reason is Robert Neville. He is the last real man living in a world that has been decimated by a disease that turns everyone into a vampire. Even animals have been hit by the disease. I’m going to cheat a little here and paste my review. Robert Neville is this novella for me, and my entire review is about his character.
I would definitely call I Am Legend a horror book, but not exactly for the reason that I expected. There are the vampires, and there are a couple of intense scenes with them, but that wasn’t what made the book scary to me. It was more about the absolute aloneness that Neville experiences. He truly is the last man in the world. How would you deal with that? Would you give up? Would you keep fighting? Would you start searching for others? Would you search for the reason behind the horror that has become your life? Matheson explores all of these avenues and more. Neville’s reactions felt very real to me. I experienced all of his emotions with him. The vampires were scary at first, and then they just sort of become background noise. Then there’s the rage, despair, curiosity, really the whole gamut of emotions that you would feel in that position. There’s even one scene that just broke my heart. It’s all in here, it all feels very real, and I am very impressed.
In case you’re wondering, I thought the Will Smith movie had very little in common with this book.
Who did you connect with this week? Link your post on Mr. Linky, then be sure to go check out the other Character Connections!
5 Comments
+JMJ+
I first heard about this book in a tutorial for my class on Genre. My tutor recommended it as a great book that both perfectly represents the genre and turns it on its head. I hope to read it myself sooner rather than later. =)
i loved that book, the movies were good 2.
great pick. I love I am legend so when you told about the similarities, I wish i have the book now. ;p
this is one of those books on my tbr pile. i'm so intrigued with the vampire element now. and yes, i was wondering on your thoughts of how the movie compared as it was getting some good reviews too.
Wow, great pick! I don't know the story, but now that I read your review, I would sure like to read it. I like a good scary stories, especially when vampires are involved.