I Am Legend: And Other Stories [MP3 CD]

Richard Matheson (Author), Robertson Dean (Narrator), Yuri Rasovsky (Narrator)

Product Details

• MP3 CD
• Publisher: Blackstone Audiobooks (August 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1433208644
• ISBN-13: 978-1433208645
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.2 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,719,694 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Richard Matheson was born in 1926. He began publishing SF with his short story 'Born of Man and Woman' in 1950. I Am Legend was published in 1954 and subsequently filmed as The Omega Man (in 1971), starring Charlton Heston, and I Am Legend (in 2007), starring Will Smith. Matheson wrote the script for the film The Incredible Shrinking Man, an adaptation of his second SF novel The Shrinking Man. The film won a Hugo award in 1958. He wrote many screenplays as well as episodes of The Twilight Zone. He continued to write short stories and novels, some of which formed the basis for film scripts, including Duel, directed by Steven Spielberg in 1971. A film of his novel What Dreams May Come was released in 1998, starring Robin Williams. Stephen King has cited Richard Matheson as a creative influence on his work.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Pleased and scared, March 5, 2010

By 

Elizabeth A. Bidwell - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: I Am Legend: And Other Stories (MP3 CD)

While I was doing research for a thesis article, I came across this title and heard positive reviews for its writing content and its affect on literature after its publication. I was not disappointed when I read this book. I was not a huge fan of the film, but I really wanted to try the original story to see where the film came from. I think that it can sometimes be hard to sort through a book that is completely internal and contains essentially only one character, but the thoughts and trials, and behaviors reflected in the main character, were an enthralling exploration into the human mind. The end of the film and the end of the book are completely different. Personally, I think the film should have taken more from the book. The ending was perfect and wonderfully daunting. As far as the other stories within the text, some made me very scared, some just didn't do anything for me. I would absolutely recommend this book for anyone who love science fiction and influential literature.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Nice job, February 2, 2008

By 

V. Arney "Blind Chick" (Austin Texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: I Am Legend: And Other Stories (MP3 CD)

I've been listening to audio books from the State Library for over 30 years and received a copy of this through unabridged.com. I thought it was pretty well done. Maybe coulda done without the WC Fields impression in one story, but the rest were very good.

A previous reviewer said "the stories were dated" - the book was originally published in 1954 and the story in the book is MUCH better than the current movie which was VERY badly done trying to make the story "HIP" - Wasn't Will Smith's fault - just bad direction.

I will definitely be "reading" this book again. Good Science Fiction/horror NEVER gets old.

2.0 out of 5 stars Part Good, Part Bad, September 20, 2011

By 

R.C. (Virginia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: I Am Legend: And Other Stories (MP3 CD)

I was interested in listening to the audio presentation of 'I Am Legend' and was not disappointed in it. The story differs greatly from the movie and it was a pleasure to hear it. The narrator of that story did a great job.

However, when I got to the 'Other Stories' part of the audio book (about 4-5 disks into the 10 disk set), I found myself very disappointed by the poor narration (performed by a different narrator). I suppose some of the stories might have been ok, but like a previous reviewer, I stopped listening at about disk 7 because I couldn't stand listening to the narrator anymore ... couldn't even force myself. I've listened to a lot of audio books because I do so much driving and of the hundreds of books I've read this narrator was by far the worst. The short stories weren't Mattheson's best. I have read many of his short stories and liked others much better.

My recommendation would be to find another audio version of I Am Legend that doesn't include the short stories.