Underwhelmed by Zombies

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

Jane Austen & Seth Grahame-Smith

Quirk Productions, 2009. Pages: 317.

I received this book as a Christmas present.

I love Jane Austen and I have for a long time. I also love zombies, so I thought that I would greatly enjoy this book. I was expecting a fun mash up. I have been reading this since Christmas and it was hard to finish. I probably would have abandoned it if I hadn't felt so sure that I was supposed to like it.

It's hard for me to pinpoint exactly what I didn't like about it. It mostly follows the storyline of Pride and Prejudice, but Grahame-Smith inserts his passages whenever he feels like it, which it not always a smooth transition. Also Austen has a great sense of humor placed throughout her books and Grahame-Smith has a teenage boy sense of humor that feels out of place among Austen's witty dialogue. For instance, below is a quote from the book that is obviously Grahame-Smith's:

"She remembered the lead ammunition in her pocket and offered it to him. 'Your balls, Mr Darcy?' He reached out and closed her hand around them, and offered, 'They belong to you, Miss Bennett.' Upon this, their color changed, and they were forced to look away from one another, lest they laugh" (205).

I mean seriously? Austen is rolling over in her grave right now. And there are several passages that are like this.

I finished this book yesterday with a bad taste in my mouth, but luckily last night I went to see the production of Pride and Prejudice that the Oregon Shakespeare Festival is putting on right now. It was fresh and funny and made me fall in love with the real Elizabeth and Darcy all over again. Thank goodness that all is right with the world again!