I Am Legend

By: Richard Matheson

Narrated by: Robertson Dean

Length: 5 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's summary

The basis for the film starring Academy Award nominee Will Smith, I Am Legend is a classic of horror and suspense.

In I Am Legend, a terrible plague has decimated the world, and those who were unfortunate enough to survive are transformed into bloodthirsty creatures of the night. Robert Neville is the last living man on earth. Every other man, woman, and child has become a vampire, and they are all hungry for Neville’s blood. By day, he is the hunter, stalking the sleeping undead through the abandoned ruins of civilization. By night, he barricades himself in his home and prays for the dawn. How long can one man survive in a world of vampires?

Richard Matheson’s chilling tale is a white-knuckle ride into a world of darkness and terror.

©1954, 1982 by Richard Matheson (P)2007 Blackstone Audio Inc.

Critic reviews

"One of the ten all-time best novels of vampirism." ( Fangoria)
"The most clever and riveting vampire novel since Dracula." (Dean Koontz)
"I think the author who influenced me most as a writer was Richard Matheson. Books like I Am Legend were an inspiration to me." (Stephen King)

five star book!

This is really a fantastic book. None of the movies based on it really do it justice. This is a very intimate telling of one man's experience with the end of civilization as he knows it. Movie adaptations always have to add more action or add new elements. What makes this novel so remarkable and memorable, however, is just how intimate the story telling is and how much I find myself caring about Robert Neville's character.

It's particularly remarkable to me how well this story holds up considering it was written in 1954. It is written in such a way as to have very, very few aspects that date the story. It is just as easy to visualize the story as happening today as I believe it would have been 50 or 60 years ago.

It is, in my opinion, a very intelligent and smartly written book and I'd recommend it wholeheartedly. The narrator is a perfect match for the material as well! I'd give it more stars if I could!

A great read...

I was going to see the movie, but decided to get the book instead. As usual, I'm happy I did so. The narration of this book really sets the mood for the story. The story is believable enough for a zombie book and avoids the cliche moments found in so many other zombie flicks/stories. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and recommend it to anyone who enjoys the horror genre.

Listened to this because I'd seen the movie

Is there anything you would change about this book?

It was quite different from the movie, and the differences made it really interesting. I guess I hadn't noticed when I purchased it that it was more of a novella, though. I was a bit disappointed at how short it was.

If you’ve listened to books by Richard Matheson before, how does this one compare?

n/a

What three words best describe Robertson Dean’s performance?

believable, engaging, realistic

Could you see I Am Legend being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

Well, yeah. Will Smith!

One of the great vampire novels

Richard Matheson's highly influential tale of a lone survivor's effort to retain his humanity and cling to hope in a future populated by vampires was a fresh, original take on both vampire and "last man on earth" novels when it was first published in the '50s. It still holds up well today. It's strength lies not only in the powerful simplicity of it's premise but also in Matheson's memorable characterization of Robert Neville. It's good stuff that carries an emotional wallop and it's impact on popular culture has been enormous, particularly since it served as inspiration for George Romero's Night of the Living Dead, which in turn has inspired the zombie "boom" that's occurred over the last decade or so. I Am Legend itself has even been adapted to film 3 or 4 times.

This is good stuff, well worth a credit and Robertson Dean does an excellent job as narrator.

I am Legend

Great Book , Highly Recomend it .

An underrated sci-fi classic - stick with it.

A fan of Richard Matheson's work, I bought this audio immediately when it became available on Audible, but did not actually listen to it for 3 years. My hesitation was due to my initial impression that the story was kind of "hokey" -- almost everybody on Earth has turned into a vampire?!? Really? When I finally gave it a chance, I discovered a wonderful, exciting story about science struggling to dispel myth and superstition. The bad guys in this story are not vampires in the traditional sense. Matheson provides us with new concepts for defining vampirism. Ultimately, this is a tale of one man's attempt to survive after a worldwide bacteriological infestation. Released in 1954, this is the father of all the end-of-the-world zombie killer flicks of our era.

Eh...

has its moments but mostly it's boring and tedious.

"he puts lamb onto sear. takes a quick shower. flips his lamb. mixes a drink."

a lot of boring and unnecessary details like that. it also leaves me wondering what the point of the story is, nothing felt gained or lost by the end. In a rare exception to the rule, the movie was better (probably because it shares very little with the book).


SPOILERS BELOW











The dog still dies...

not at all like the movie

I enjoyed this book more than the movie staring Will Smith. The book is not what I was expecting. If you like Syfy/horror then you will like this.

Darker than the movie of the same name.

I was surprised to learn it was written in 1954 (I think). Very dark. Told almost entirely in the first person. Not gorey, but very stark. Worth reading/listening. The narrator does a good job of conveying the mood without overdoing it.

Forget the movie

If you are getting the book to add to the movie, you will be disappointed. They are completely different. I live the movie and that is why I got the book. While the stories are so different they should have different titles, I love the book also.