I Am Legend - Richard Matheson

...the character is such that I found Neville's reaction to his isolation from mankind was particularly engaging, with what appears to be a borderline schizophrenia prominent throughout the majority of the book - indeed the character often seems on the brink of a descending into madness because of his situation. Neville's battle with various inner demons is a great thread through the book, from his use of alcohol to try and forget the past, to his feeling ...
...elation at certain prospects. I felt these passages were something most people could identify with to some degree and it helps you feel empathy for Neville and his situation, drawing you into the book more.

Matheson's writing style is quite clever in places, creating threads that later help back up certain elements of the character and plot. For example, early on in the book, Neville mentions two names, 'Kathy' and 'Virginia', though ... more

Science-Fiction has been around for decades and, for many at least, can spark the imagination. The 'SF-Masterworks Series' goes back some fifty to sixty years, presenting novels that are often considered 'classics', giving fans of the genre, young and old, the opportunity to read books and encounter authors they may otherwise never have come across.

'I Am Legend' is the second book in the series and also the shortest I've come across so far, (being only 160-pages long). Originally published in 1954, it was the first novel written by Richard Matheson, who previous had some short stories published. For those of you who are interested in such things, a quick read of the pre-story pages reveals that the book later went on to become the movie 'The Omega Man'.

Set initially in 1976, 'I Am Legend' tells the story of Robert Neville, a man whose sole task is to survive in a world where everyone else has somehow become vampires. Hunting them by day, but resorting to barricading himself in his house for protection when night falls. It details three years or so of his life, coming to terms with his lot, trying to survive and, most of all, trying to change his circumstances for the better.

Now, vampires may not seem like a typical subject for a science-fiction novel, but in many ways, this is no typical sci-fi. Matheson walks a very fine line between two rarely connected genres and, in my opinion at least, manages to do it very well.

Neville is a well written character and rather than being some kind of semi-superhuman being, he is simply a average man forced into a difficult and strange situation, who has to hunt vampires in order to preserve his own life, rather than out of any sense of duty.
The way in which Matheson writes the character is such that I found Neville's reaction to his isolation from mankind was particularly engaging, with what appears to be a borderline schizophrenia prominent throughout the majority of the book - indeed the character often seems on the brink of a descending into madness because of his situation. Neville's battle with various inner demons is a great thread through the book, from his use of alcohol to try and forget the past, to his feeling of a forced life of celibacy.
Despair and hope also feature heavily through the book, with Neville going through repeated bouts of extreme despair through to great elation at certain prospects. I felt these passages were something most people could identify with to some degree and it helps you feel empathy for Neville and his situation, drawing you into the book more.

Matheson's writing style is quite clever in places, creating threads that later help back up certain elements of the character and plot. For example, early on in the book, Neville mentions two names, 'Kathy' and 'Virginia', though it is not initially clear who these people are. A little further into the book, by using a sort of 'flashback' it is revealed that they were his young daughter and wife and the reason behind his feelings towards them, as well as his alcoholic tendencies, become clear.

I did quite enjoy the way certain things were explained by using flashbacks, taking Neville back to 1975 and a time when there was still other humans alive.
On the other hand, certain things are not so well explained. For example, the novel hints that there was some kind of war, but it is never really mentioned in any great detail. Equally, early on it is stated that Neville was a soldier, but this seems in many ways a throw away comment, not entirely relevant to the plot - the only remotely significance that it connects to is that he had a cross tattooed on his chest whilst he was in service, but this also is only loosely connected to the rest of the plot - I for one felt the tattoo should have played a much more significant role in the story.

One thing I did particularly liked about the way 'I Am Legend' is written is that is it divided into three parts, the first part being January 1976, the second March 1976 and the third June 1978. This I found a very effective way of moving the story along, without having to go into great detail about Neville's precise actions between certain events.
Another thing I enjoyed was that the 'science' aspect of the book was Neville's own investigations into what had caused vampires in the first place, trying to decipher facts from myth. For example, he knows garlic keeps them away, but he doesn't understand why. The science of this particular fiction is not fantastical or futuristic, but grounded in tried and tested methods of experiment, observe and conclude. I myself have not read many sci-fi novels in this vein and so found it quite an interesting and different approach.

Reading the book itself it no great chore - I managed to complete it in a day - as the language used is very accessible and easy to read. Again, by not relying on fantastic technology or alien concepts, I believe Matheson is able to reach a greater audience than is typically capable of science-fiction. I actually think if you're the kind of person who's struggled with sci-fi because of certain concepts, or you've just never particularly enjoyed it as a genre, this book may still well appeal to you, as the science is in many ways secondary to the character development.

One thing I have often found amusing when reading older science-fiction is that, as I read it, it is often set in the past, (though admittedly when it was written, it was the author's future). Some times you have to laugh at certain ideas that the writer had, (Philip K. Dick's 'Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep?' for example has human-like androids walking around in the early 1990s); however, in this instance, because Matheson doesn't rely on possible technological developments as a crutch for the plot, the story works well as a potential alternative history. Equally, the story to my mind still 'holds water', as it were, had it been set in virtually any other period in history or the future.

Towards the end of the book, (or at least during the third part), I felt certain things had been thrown in as an after thought - an example of this is Neville's theory as to why he hasn't become a vampire himself, citing the fact that he was bitten by a vampire bat whilst in service with the army; however, there had been no previous mention of this earlier in the book and for me it seemed to come out of nowhere. That said, it didn't ruin my overall enjoyment of the book, as its strength lies not in precise detail of plot, but more in the reactions and interactions of the characters.

I wouldn't say that I was disappointed with the way the novel ends, but it did seem a little bit as if the reader had been left hanging - in many ways it lends itself superbly to a sequel, but (at least to my current knowledge), Matheson never wrote another book based on the same timeline. Despite this "cliff-hanger" ending, the plot does overall round itself off nicely, answering far more questions than it actually leaves.

'I Am Legend' is a book I would probably read again at some point, but it would probably be a few years down the line. Although there are some minor flaws in the plot, I found it an enjoyable read and I would happily recommend it to people even, as already mentioned, if you're not normally a sci-fi fan, I still believe you would be able to get some enjoyment from this particular novel. By now means a great, life-changing book, but I can understand exactly why it's been chosen as part of the 'Masterworks' series, well worth reading.  

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