Time spent reading:
6/10: 8:15am-10:15am; 11:00am-11:35am
Total time: 2 hrs 35 min
317 pages
Quirk Books
I won't lie; I really wanted this book to be outstanding. The first time I heard about it was through an email from a co-worker; from there, I knew this would either be a marvel of contemporary literature or a total wash. Sadly for me, it was the latter. Most people know my fascination with the old classics (Anna Karenina, The Count of Monte Cristo, Dracula to name a few), and also my love of well-written horror novels, specifically zombie-related ones (World War Z, The Zombie Survival Guide, The Historian). As one could foretell, this should have "TRAVIS" stamped all over it. This was not the case.
The initial idea of PP&Z is a remarkable one. The land of 19th century England is overrun by the plague, not the Black Plague, but rather a plague that turns people into "unmentionables", which go on roving through the countryside searching for feasts of brains. As any worthwhile review should, I will begin with the faults. Grahame-Smith has stated that he has taken 85% of the original text and has merely included 15% of his own. What he fails to mention is that out of the 85%, only 60% is the original text. Oftentimes, the text has been reworded, restated, and paraphrased to such a point that the "original" text is left boring, often devoid of the initial meaning or flair of an Austen novel. Readers who adore Jane Austen read her because of her writing style, wit, and ability to break down social structures so that the typical high-flaunting norm doesn't remain in place. With PP&Z, readers get a watered-down Austen that is constantly surrounded by zombie-stricken England.
But not every scene is deserving of an inclusion of a plagued unmentionable. In these instances, Grahame-Smith forgoes the seemingly forced involvement of zombies and discusses the Bennet family's constant practice in martial arts, Shaolin practices, their studies of various types of hand to hand combat, and that they should be spending their day cleaning muskets and sharpening blades. While this seems quite humorous at first as Mr. Bennet states, "I would much prefer their minds be engaged in deadly arts than clouded with dreams of marriage and fortune" by the time I read "ninjas" or "Kyoto" for the umpteenth time, I grew weary of it. I never knew this should have been called Pride and Prejudice and Zombies and Ninjas and Anything Else to Further the Plot. It seems as if the massive plot holes in the text have been substituted by ninja fights and zombie eradication. This sounds like a good idea, but if you're trying to follow the story, (But who would really buy this book for the story?) good luck!
Don't get me wrong, Grahame-Smith does some amazing writing in the book. In the first few chapters alone, he very subtly inputs the zombie situation. There were numerous times I found myself laughing hysterically by the sheer absurdity of it all. While the bits between the zombie attacks have been so paired down that it severely mangles Austen's original text, the inclusion of zombie-related storyline at least halfway makes up for it. In this version, Elizabeth Bennet is not simply a strong-minded daughter of the poor Bennet Estate, she is also quite adept at martial arts, weaponry, and who knows what else. Instead of quietly being upset at Mr. Darcy during their first meeting at the Ball, she removes the ankle dagger and proffers to slice his throat. Fortunately for the remainder of the story, she is interrupted by a horde of zombies, of which her and her sisters quickly dispatch.
Some of the additions work quite well with the book; they do spice up the original. What better way to describe Charlotte Lucas' sudden want of marriage to Mr. Collins anything but a good Christian end?
'I don't have long Elizabeth. All I ask is that my final months be happy ones, and that I be permitted a husband who will see to my proper Christian beheading and burial.'
These instances work wonderfully, but the blandness of the rest of the text overshadows the pure genius involved. If you have never read Pride and Prejudice or you could not stand it when you tried to three summers ago, this could possibly be a great way to actually get into the work. It is sharp-witted, humorous, and very slyly done at times. But if you have read the original, and enjoy Austen, this might leave you with a sense of disdain, even if you are not a purist like myself.
Despite the great idea, awesome (and I'm not joking about this) in-book illustrations, reader's discussion guide questions, and constant flesh eating zombies, the novelty wore off fairly quick. Maybe my hopes were too high or maybe the book really did peter out towards the end...
No comments:
Post a Comment