Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

Hey everyone! Well I am taking a break from my AP English III summer work to write on my blog, so this is a much needed break. For today's book, I give you a twist on a classic; Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Seth Grahame-Smith, based off of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice.

Characters: Elizabeth Bennett: one of five daughters/an expert in the art of zombie killing/despises Mr. Darcy at the beginning of the story
Mr. Darcy: experienced zombie killer/rich friend of Mr. Charles Bingley/tries to ignore his true feelings for Elizabeth
Jane Bennett: Elizabeth's sister who is the closest to her in age and attitude/likes Mr. Bingley/is a skilled zombie hunter herself
Mr. Bennett, Mrs. Bennett, Mary Bennett, Lidia Bennett, and Catherine Bennett: the rest of the Bennett family/most of them have some skill with dealing with zombies
Caroline Bingley: sister of Charles Bingley/is extremely jealous of Elizabeth/likes Mr. Darcy

The Plot: Enter a parallel world based off Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, but with a whole new twist. The town of Meryton, where Pride and Prejudice is set, is infested with zombies that enjoy nothing more than eating the citizens of the town. In Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, Elizabeth Bennett isn't only a smart, witty young woman; she is also one of the most experienced zombie hunters in all of Meryton. Along with her sisters, Elizabeth tries to live a normal life, while still vanquishing as many of the zombies as possible. Just like in Jane Austen's version, Elizabeth's normal life is interrupted with the meeting of Mr. Darcy at a ball. However, in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, the party does not end in a carriage ride home; it ends in a vicious, violent zombie attack on the townspeople. Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth each note the other's skill in defeating zombies after the attack, and from then on their paths continue to cross. As they become closer, Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth must confront the reality of each's station in society, and the more real threat: the continued zombie infestation.

What I liked: To be quite honest with you, there wasn't a whole lot I did enjoy about the book. It was more of a disappointment than a success. But I did think that the drawings that were in the book were fantastic. There is one of Elizabeth and Jane fighting through an army of zombies, while Mr. Darcy looks on in the background; for me, this really made the book more enjoyable and different from Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. Also, while it is kind of unfair, the part I enjoyed the most was the original dialogue from Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice.

What I didn't like: Now I am sure some of you are a little confused right now. What does "Jane Austen's original dialogue" mean? Well, when Seth Grahame-Smith "wrote" the book, he took the original text of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, and just slid in some dialogue and action sequences of zombies. Seriously? I fail to consider how this book even qualifies as writing, let alone became a New York Times Bestseller. The book was choppy and didn't flow well at all. It literally went from Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy having some meaningful dialogue to "Oh did you hear about Lady Catherine's trained ninjas?" Why? If you are going to write a story about Pride and Prejudice characters and zombies, why do you have to ruin the original, beautiful story with your zombie rubbish. Seth Grahame-Smith is again, not a writer, rather, a poor writer disguised as a New York Time Bestseller, who reverts to chopping up classics, instead of building off his own ideas and stories.

Overall: 2 out of 10. Horrible. You want to read something good? Read the original. If Jane Austen were alive, she would be bawling her eyes out because her novel of beauty, thoughtfulness, honesty, pride and prejudice has been reduced to washed up horror book designed to appeal to the minds of...well I can't even figure out who this would appeal to. Teenage boys? Yet somehow I doubt teenage boys would pick up a novel with Pride and Prejudice in the title in the first place.