I confess. I am a Pride and Prejudice snob. I love Jane Austen's classic love story. When Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: a Graphic novel by Seth Grahame-Smith was published a few years ago, I resolved to not read it because I didn't want anything to mar my opinion of a favorite novel. Then the graphic novel adaptation came out last year and my resolve began to crack. Perhaps I should just take a little peek...
First let me give credit where credit is due: Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: a Graphic novel was written by Jane Austen AND Seth Graham-Smith and was adapted for the graphic novel by Tony Lee then illustrated by Cliff Richards. Jane Austen's story is in there, all the best parts, lines, characters, and settings. Grahame-Smith just twisted them to fit his theme of zombies taking over Hertfordshire and those warriors who fight against them. Elizabeth and Jane being two of the best warriors in the county. Tony Lee, no doubt, took even more of the best bits and fit them into little dialogue boxes while Cliff Richards black and white drawings of the Bennets, Darcys, Binghams were interspersed with lots of drawings of zombies. All came together to create a very creative, oft funny, mash-up.
This illustration from the book shows Elizabeth and Darcy fighting zombies side by side. Richards drawings do not distort the human image. All of his girls are uncommonly pretty and sometimes I had a hard time telling one from the other but I did enjoy them.
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| Del-Ray Books |
Here's what the U.K publisher had to say about this book:
"It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains." So begins Pride and Prejudice and Zombies--Jane Austen's immortal classic, now brought to glorious, gory new life with original, all-new scenes of zombie mayhem. Seth Grahame-Smith's irreverent and witty reworking of this novel immediately struck a nerve... Now Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is a graphic novel--the perfect format to bring this remixed masterpiece to zombie-loving pop-culture fans. -Titan BooksI'm not really in the zombie-loving category of readers but I can certainly see the appeal, especially for boys who would want nothing more than to make fun of a book that girls have been fawning over for several hundred years. Give it a try and see what you think.
Heard about this....now I may actually go and read it
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen the graphic novel but I did read Pride & Prejudice & Zombies and was surprised by how much of the story is the original Austen. I'm sure there were some disappointed zombie fans who picked up this book not realizing how much would be about Lizzie and Darcy.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure I can fully get into the P&P&Z craze, but the graphic novel sounds better. I'll have to investiage this further!
ReplyDeleteI'm a huge P&P fan, too, but I loved the zombie book--I thought it was incredibly witty. One of my favorite lines dealt with Lizzie hiking up her skirt to give a zombie a roundhouse kick to the head. I also enjoyed the Lady Catherine battle. And finally there is a more satisfying reason for Charlotte's choice! I may have to check out the graphic novel, although personally, graphic novels are almost distracting sometimes. Just like with the Jane Austen "choose your own adventure" book I read, I find myself having to read/look at every single little part. Anyway, hope all is well!
ReplyDelete-Kristin