Pride and Prejudice and Zombies

There was buzz all around the English department. There was a fascinating new book out. It was called Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Several professors rushed out to the local Hastings to get a copy and by mid-afternoon, it was all anyone was talking about.

This was the scene at my university last year when new author Seth Grahame-Smith unveiled his debut novel, Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. There was a lot of talk about whether or not this was a good thing for Austen and classic literature overall. At the time, the jury was still out. Many needed to see the effects and read the book before casting judgment.

I have since read the book. I don't care for it, and there are several reasons why. First of all, as an English teacher, I find it appalling to see a classic piece of literature ripped apart, rewritten, and sensationalized just to make money. I wonder how many people who have read P&P&Z have actually read Pride and Prejudice. I think that people should not be allowed to read P&P&Z until the read the original. Secondly, most people will not understand the actual good parts of the novel because they have not read the original. Grahame-Smith has a bizarrely wonderful gift of mimicking other people's writing and to understand the thematic undercurrents of literature. He is able to twist the issues, themes, and symbolisms into a zombified version that is actually very clever and makes sense. But this will be lost on people who do not understand Austen in the original.

It isn't that Grahame-Smith is a bad writer; he is actually quite brilliant. I am mainly just saddened by the fact that his talent is wasted on the butchering of an equally brilliant work of art that has already been around for over 200 years.

What infuriates me more than P&P&Z, is the tidal wave of literature-corrupting wanna-bes that has been left in it's wake. Books like Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters, Little Women and Werewolves, and Jane Slayer are knock-offs of a knock-off that lack originality and are the bane of the publishing industry to date. It feels as though publishers are selling their souls to make a buck. They are allowing classic works to be decimated for the sake of pop culture.

However, there is a silver lining. In a few months, look for my review of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. It is currently being published by D20 Magazine and I have to wait for copyright to come back to me before I can put it here.

So, to sum-up, the answer to the question "should I read that?" is:
only if you have read Pride and Prejudice first.

Welcome to my blog

Hi there. I have recently discovered that I really like critiquing books. I have always liked reading books. I have always liked writing my own stories. But when I wrote my first book review for D20 magazine, I fell in love with writing critiques. I'm not sure why this spoke to me, but you are probably wondering if I am qualified to critique the writings of others. well, here is my basic resume:
I received my master's degree in English from the Univesity of Central Missouri in May of 2009. I earned my bacherlor's in English (with minors in history and Chinese language) in May of 2007. While I was working on my master's degree, I taught college composition for UCM. I got my job based mainly on my writing skills. I was published several times during these years for both scholarly and creative works. This job required lots of editing and showing students how to make their writing better. I have also taught writing for several other universities such as the University of Central Florida, the University of Phoenix, DeVry, and ITT Technical Institute. So I have lots of experience in writing and editing.
I really enjoyed my years as a student. I went on to graduate school mainly because I didn't want to leave school. What I miss the most about college was discussing literature. Teaching writing doesn't give many opportunities to discuss Shakespeare, Tennyson, or Poe. Teaching rhetoric can be very dry since (espeically at the tech schools) it is teaching a formula for writing. But actually having a discussion about what makes a story great, or wondering what something symbolizes, or offering tips on how the story could have been better, is something I have had limited opportunity for in the last year...and I'm aching for it.
Earlier this year I was given the opportunity to become the book critic for D20 Magazine (a magazine aimed at female gamers). I picked Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. Whether or not I enjoyed the book (I will publish the review here after it is released in the magazine, but you will have to wait until September!), I enjoyed the discussion about the book. And, thus, my new passion was born.
So, here is my new blog. For D20, I focus in books that are in the real of sci-fi and fantasy. But here in the blog, I will review all types of books. For instance I am working my way through a travel book about China I can't wait to write about. I hope you like reading my reviews as much as I like writing them!