Um…oh my gosh…what to say? A quarter of me thinks I should be outraged, the other three-quarters is insanely giggling, and then there’s the very small uncounted minority of me that is throwing her fist in the air and screaming “Finally! This is the best idea ever!”
What am I talking about? This:
Written by a guy called Seth Grahame-Smith, it’s a novel that contains Jane Austen’s original text, with all-new scenes of zombie mayhem. Before you jane-purists get too much up in arms, ready to slaughter the author much in the way that…oh…Elizabeth Bennet apparently slaughters zombies in this book, here’s a few words from the author that I yanked off his blog:
“For the record, I love Jane Austen. She wrote comedies. She was subversive and snarky and wore bonnets. Good qualities, all. And I love Pride and Prejudice. I’d wager I read it cover-to-cover thirty times while writing P&P&Z. It was the most fun I’ve ever had writing. Seriously.”
So why would anyone who claims to like Austen write this clearly dispicable book of Austen-loathing? From the author’s blog, again:
“Well, I’ll tell you why: because it’s funny. Because the idea of uptight, early 19th Century aristocrats parading around in their finery, attending stuffy dances and taking tea in the midst of an all-out war with the undead struck me as really, really funny. And because the thought of Elizabeth Bennet striking down hordes of zombies with a Katana sword struck me as awesome. That’s the best answer I’ve got.”
I myself adore Jane Austen, always have and always will, but I think there’s room in my love for a few zombies. And I have to say, I’m very curious how he managed to do it. How does one take the original text, and work in zombies and Katana swords? How does one even get the idea?
I think I like this Seth Grahame-Smith.
Out of Eden 