3 1/2 stars!I am guessing that most of you have heard of this book since it caused a fair stir in the literary world when it came out last year. I was drawn to it right away once I heard about it, (I don't know- something about combining a great Jane Austen book with zombies was just so cheeky and weird, I had to see what it was all about). But since fetus Elinor was inexplicably rather bent on keeping me from reading anything at all, I didn't get around to it until now. So, if any of you have been wondering about it, I thought I would be the guinea pig and read it and let you know of my opinion.
My opinion:
It was a lot of fun and I fully enjoyed it.
The secret of enjoying it I think, is to pick it up with a sense of humor. If you think you will be put off or think it lame- you probably will. But, if say, hearing that the first ball in the novel where Lizzy meets Mr. Darcy for the first time is interrupted by zombies crashing through the windows and feasting on the brains of the nearest dancers interests you- well, I recommend it. The author left the original story in tact as much as he could, but had to change a few plot points to make room for the "unmentionables" that live in this alternate world.
England for a long time (over 50 years) has been plagued by dead people leaving their graves to eat human brains. Since it is not a new thing, it has made it a mundane part of life for the characters. The ability to behead a zombie is one of the many accomplishments an "accomplished" lady may add to her list of respectabilities. All of the Bennett sisters are very accomplished in this regard, but none more then the spunky Elizabeth of course (which is one of the attractions Darcy is intrigued by). Simple things are changed to the story, for example- when Jane goes to Mr. Bingley's estate in the rain and gets ill, which leads to Lizzy walking there to see her (and getting mud on her hems), she is actually met on the road by zombies and gets a bit cut before saving herself (see how it works: zombies and fighting instead of rain and fever). Darcy's Aunt Miss Catherine is one of England's most accomplished zombie fighters having studied in Japan (and Lizzy was only a student in China, which put Lizzy down several notches in her eyes upon their meeting). You may guess how the sparring at the end between the two goes in this book as opposed to the original (which actually made me miss some of the wit that Austin's version had).
Anyway, it was a bit of fun and it's always good to read Pride and Prejudice. The zombies really take a back seat to the story and are written to the point where you actually buy it and kind of forget they aren't in the original story. Funny thing: half way through me reading the book, I came across the Kiera Knightly version on tv, so I dvr'd it. I have never seen that version since I have never had any interest in a world where Colin Firth is not Mr. Darcy. I thought it would be fun to see the story in it's purer form since I was in the middle of the book. I had to divide it up in two different nights. The first half was normal, but when I got to the second half (now almost done with the book) I was half expecting the zombies to come around since they had become such a natural part of the story for me. Oh, my biggest complaint was that about 3 times the author slipped in some "double entendres" (I really don't know how to spell that and hope I'm close), they are totally PG but that fact didn't stop it from being very aggrieves to me! Zombies- sure. They belonged in my Jane Austin stories WAY more then those couple little throw in ends of conversation that made Lizzy blush. They didn't have anything to do with the original characters/story OR zombies.
By the way, I really liked the movie- Kiera Knightly made a fine Miss Bennett, but I did miss Colin greatly.
After reading this, I have now decided to give Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters a go.
Yeah. It really exists.
It was a lot of fun and I fully enjoyed it.
The secret of enjoying it I think, is to pick it up with a sense of humor. If you think you will be put off or think it lame- you probably will. But, if say, hearing that the first ball in the novel where Lizzy meets Mr. Darcy for the first time is interrupted by zombies crashing through the windows and feasting on the brains of the nearest dancers interests you- well, I recommend it. The author left the original story in tact as much as he could, but had to change a few plot points to make room for the "unmentionables" that live in this alternate world.
England for a long time (over 50 years) has been plagued by dead people leaving their graves to eat human brains. Since it is not a new thing, it has made it a mundane part of life for the characters. The ability to behead a zombie is one of the many accomplishments an "accomplished" lady may add to her list of respectabilities. All of the Bennett sisters are very accomplished in this regard, but none more then the spunky Elizabeth of course (which is one of the attractions Darcy is intrigued by). Simple things are changed to the story, for example- when Jane goes to Mr. Bingley's estate in the rain and gets ill, which leads to Lizzy walking there to see her (and getting mud on her hems), she is actually met on the road by zombies and gets a bit cut before saving herself (see how it works: zombies and fighting instead of rain and fever). Darcy's Aunt Miss Catherine is one of England's most accomplished zombie fighters having studied in Japan (and Lizzy was only a student in China, which put Lizzy down several notches in her eyes upon their meeting). You may guess how the sparring at the end between the two goes in this book as opposed to the original (which actually made me miss some of the wit that Austin's version had).
Anyway, it was a bit of fun and it's always good to read Pride and Prejudice. The zombies really take a back seat to the story and are written to the point where you actually buy it and kind of forget they aren't in the original story. Funny thing: half way through me reading the book, I came across the Kiera Knightly version on tv, so I dvr'd it. I have never seen that version since I have never had any interest in a world where Colin Firth is not Mr. Darcy. I thought it would be fun to see the story in it's purer form since I was in the middle of the book. I had to divide it up in two different nights. The first half was normal, but when I got to the second half (now almost done with the book) I was half expecting the zombies to come around since they had become such a natural part of the story for me. Oh, my biggest complaint was that about 3 times the author slipped in some "double entendres" (I really don't know how to spell that and hope I'm close), they are totally PG but that fact didn't stop it from being very aggrieves to me! Zombies- sure. They belonged in my Jane Austin stories WAY more then those couple little throw in ends of conversation that made Lizzy blush. They didn't have anything to do with the original characters/story OR zombies.
By the way, I really liked the movie- Kiera Knightly made a fine Miss Bennett, but I did miss Colin greatly.
After reading this, I have now decided to give Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters a go.
Yeah. It really exists.
16 comments:
Ok I have much to say here. This is a tough one for me! It sounds interesting but I don't know. Not really my cup of tea (pun intended) since I deplore all scary/monster stuff. Besides P&P is hands down my favorite Austen novel and I think that might ruin if for me. I don't know, it sounds so interesting though! I love that you thought it was part of the original and thought zombies would pop out in the movie! Haha. Man, this is a toughie. Do you think I would like it? I might give it a try sometime. I love the new P&P movie, I have seen it so many times. Not a Keira Knightley fan at all but I love the rest of the cast so much. They are awesome. The Mr. Bingley just makes me smile.Anyway, glad you liked both.
I don't know Haley-- that's a tough one for me to call too. I can't imagine if you tried it, it would ruin the book for you. I don't see that as being a danger. I will say that it isn't scary for a second. It is in no way a horror novel. The whole idea and execution of it is just too cheeky. As far as you enjoying it, well, maybe you won't but I really don't know. I didn't know you abhorred monsters and horror of all varieties. That knowledge leads me to believe that perhaps this isn't your cup of tea. But like I said, it would never ruin the original for you, so all you can do is give it a try (if you're interested). If nothing else, it is interesting to think about how well the zombies fit into the story and perhaps what they may symbolize...
I also LOVED Mr. Bingley in the movie -he was perfectly cast. I haven't ever had a quarrel with Kiera Knightly, but I know many do.
I have not heard of these. I'm interested, though. For sure. It's a really silly concept, but sounds like they pulled it off. If it impresses you, Em, I'm willing to give them a go. After 'Of Mice & Men'. Can you believe I'm reading that? Well, I am. Sawyer reminded me that I haven't read that since like 9th grade. Need a good old Steinbeck cleanse once in a while.
Funny story about her casting in the movie: I saw her on Letterman or something like that when the movie came out and she said that when she was suggested for the role, the producers and director etc. said, "no, she's never work- she's too pretty to play Elizabeth Bennett." They met with her anyway and upon meeting her said, "oh, no- she'll be fine."
HAHAHA!! That's so funny. The biggest thing that bugs me is the way she holds her lips, they look like fish lips!! UGH! But other than that I love the movie. Mr. and Mrs. Bennett are also worthy of note, they are perfect.
Yes, I hate anything scary. Fun fact about me: I have not seen a scary movie since The Sixth Sense. Seriously. Nor do I plan on ever seeing another scary movie ever again. I HATE them.
At some point we are going to have words about our P&P film choices. Colin Firth is fine, but the chick who played Lizzie lacked ANY personality. It drove me completely crazy the whole movie!!
But I would like to read this book.
Ok, Of Mice and Men takes like 5 minutes to read. Secondly, I love that book so much and thought about reading it too after that conversation on Tuesday-- I think I own it, but haven't checked. I haven't read a Steinbeck in a few years. I still haven't read The Grapes of Wrath. It has always been on my list but for some reason, it's just never happened.
Fish lips huh? Never noticed. Boring Lizzy in the mini series huh? Didn't notice that either- but I have only seen it once and I remember being newly pregnant with Scout, so it's been some time. What is your favorite version Ami?
Agree about the no personality Lizzie, yawn fest.
Alright Pride and Prejudice fans: I was looking up this book (zombie one) on Amazon and discovered that there is a whole world of spin off books. Didn't know this. Many look terrible, but noticed one called "Mr. Darcy's Diary" and it is the original book told in Darcy's pov (think Midnight Sun). Anyone tried it? It was favorably reviewed by 2 out of 3 critics and scored well by fans. I'm kind of intrigued but was wondering if someone I trusted had given it a go. I mean Midnight Sun is a lot of fun, but the actual author of the original book wrote it, that makes a big difference to me.
Haven't read it or heard of it but definitely interested in doing so!
I'm probably more interested in reading Mr. Darcy's Diary than in the zombie one. I don't know if I can do it. Not on my top priority list, but a little intrigued. Funny write-up about it, Em, and your explanation on how it became believable. I love both versions of P & P, but still prefer the BBC 5 hour version. I've seen it at least 4 or 5 times and I agree about Collin Firth and I actually liked the Lizzy in it too. She didn't bother me. K. Knightly didn't bug me too much either. I liked her a lot better in that role than I usually do. We watched that movie in the theater at Trolley Square and that is the moment that I realized that my Scott was getting older and more sentimental. During the scene where Darcy asks her father (Donald Sutherland is great), Scott was wiping away tears. It was so cute. I saw him sitting with his daughters and I knew what was going through his mind. Now, hardly a touching scene in a movie goes by where he doesn't get a little choked up. I love it! Our college put on Fiddler on the Roof and we saw it on Friday night, and yes, he cried. Stories about daughters getting married are too much! Thanks a lot Haley--look what you did!!
Informal review of Mr. Darcy's Diary:
So I read it this week and it was a lot of fun! It plays quite indulgent to P&P fans as you might imagine. I found it well written (it still had enough of a modernness about it that I wasn't fooled into forgetting that it wasn't written by Austin) but it was well done none the less. Darcy's pov was really fun since he is such an enigma throughout the original book. This book comes up with plausible reasons for his actions that I was able to believe -what I had trouble believing was that he sat down at the end of the day and wrote out entire conversations into his journal but BAH! No matter. If you can let that detail go, (and you are a P&P fan as well as a Midnight Sun fan), this book is certainly worth your while. The author (Amanda Grange) could have written it just 1st person narrative like SM did for MS, but she didn't. Ah well, I enjoyed indulging myself with this book anyhow.
One thing on our war of the movie versions:
Colin Firth can say more in one look then that actor that played Darcy in the recent one could with an entire monologue.
I got another good recommendation from Ami I thought I would pass on (after having finished it myself last night): It's a mini series called "Cranford", and is based on another Elizabeth Gaskell novel. It's pretty funny- based on a small English town with a bunch of busy body spinsters and the hilarity that ensues. Also Haley, the guy who played Bingley has a prominent role and does a great job. Judi Dench is also in it. Anyway, check it out if you're interested.
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