Saturday, December 20, 2014

'World War Z' by Max Brooks

World War Z, an Oral History of the Zombie War, Max Brooks (3.0)

This book had a unique premise: instead of telling the story directly, it was told in retrospect by a journalist through survivor interviews. At times, this conceit distanced me from the story, but generally it differentiated the book from other apocalyptic zombie tales. The journalist starts with interviews focused on the early days of the virus/infestation. The interviewees range from Generals and Presidents to various common man survivors. Throughout the book, those interviewed are appropriate to the timing of the zombie war, with only a few revisited towards the end of the book. Mr. Brooks does treat this story as a historical look at a war (weapons and politics), though with more biology. It’s interesting to follow how so many misread the infection as rabies, though it makes the tale more realistic – who would think of zombies in real life? Oddly and atypically, I liked the movie ‘World War Z’ better. It had a lot of the same theories and plot points, but the direct plot of the movie kept my attention while the indirectness of the book did not hook me as well.

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