I Am Legend (Book)

I Am Legend is a compelling novel to me for two reasons: it is the story of one man's struggle to live in isolation with no hope, and it is the exploration of a dangerous and interesting world where vampires rule the night and whatever is left of humanity rules the day.

The world created in I Am Legend is thoroughly explored throughout the book. The main character must hide in his house (in a suburb of Los Angeles) by night, and by day he must go out and kill the vampires to dwindle their numbers--for they have no power during the day and try to hide--while also building up his own supplies and fortifying his position. The book chronicles these events and the effects they have on the main character, turning his life into a monotonous chore with seemingly no end and no hope in sight.
An interesting thing to note about the story is that it is by no true means a supernatural one. The main character is just as incredulous about his situation as the reader, and his search to find logical and scientific rules for why the 'vampires' act as they do is very interesting to see unfold. By the time it's over, an extremely convincing scientific case of why vampires behave as they do is presented.

As stated earlier, the second main conflict in this book is that of the main character's conflict with himself. He is essentially the last man alive on Earth for one reason or another and spends the remainder of his days in depression, uncertainty, and alcoholism. When hope finally comes to him in one form or another, it is moving for the both the character and the reader.

To get into the plot any more would be to spoil it, something which I have already done to a lesser extent, so I won't say any more. Also, this is a short book weighing in at about 170 pages, so that is a huge plus in my book.

I Am Legend
8.9/10