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World War Z

Author: Max Brooks
Publisher: Gerald Duckworth & Co Ltd
Category: Book

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Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

16 reviews
Sales Rank: 2696

Media: Paperback
Pages: 352
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 7.7 x 5.1 x 0.9

ISBN: 0715637037
EAN: 9780715637036
ASIN: 0715637037

Publication Date: July 27, 2007
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Brand new book delivered in the UK in 2-3 days. Over 1 million sold to Amazon customers!

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Customer Reviews: Read 11 more reviews...

5 out of 5 stars

Horrifying yet engrossing July 13, 2008
If you've read The Zombie Survival Guide, you'd expect this to be mining a similar vein - talking about the subject logically, yet with an undertone of the blackest humour. And you'd be wrong, as this is far more serious due to the nature of it, a series of interviews with survivors of The Zombie War.

On the face of it, you'd think by that description it'd be schlock horror, but I assure you that it isn't. Also, it isn't as much about the zombies but - in the finest tradition of George A Romero - the people's inability to deal with their problem due to their inability to get over their prejudices and arrogance.

So, not only do we have stories of people fleeing their homes as the zombies come crashing through the door, we have an overconfident US military operation that thinks technology will beat the zombies and find out all too late that it didn't, Cuba finding itself overrun with Americans fleeing there (and therefore becoming the new economic superpower), Israel putting up a wall and staying put, whilst South Africa, Germany and South Korea all sacrifice the many in order for the few to be able to fight back and defeat the problem.

But there's also the more personal stories, such as the Chinese submarine that flees only to find the seas filled with ships, the British defending themselves with enemies at the wall of Windsor Castle, or the pair of stories from Japan - the blogger that doesn't notice zombies filling the streets and having to abseil to safety, or the old blind sensei relying on sound and smell to stay alive.

There's also some truly horrific episodes in the book, be it the failed stand at Yonkers, Big Brother gone horribly wrong, the attempts to flee India by boat as the caste system leaves people behind, the Russian military crackdown on their own troops, and the eerie story about what (possibly) happened in North Korea.

The whole story is broken down into sections, be it the first warnings from China, the Israelis realising what was happening, and the initial outbreaks through to the full-on war and humanity's fight back and recovery (not a spoiler - think about it), with all the changes that happened as a result.

A highlight is how, although it's a series of interviews, each interviewee is infused with their own character so it doesn't sound like one person each time, and doesn't sink to cliche when with the Japanese, Russian, South African or Indian interviewees, either. The book is also endlessly creative with the stories it tells and, notably, changes genre from straight horror, to action-adventure, to thriller, even sci-fi and back again whenever the narrative demands it and it never feels forced. It also doesn't seem smug with its references back to the Zombie Survival Guide, with its weapon recommendations popping up here and there, as well as the bits of advice. It doesn't feel forced when real people appear in it, either - although never stated explicitly, it's clear Nelson Mandela, The Queen and (yes) Paris Hilton feature in various parts of the narrative. Don't worry, Paris dies.

So, like Romero you may pick it up for the zombies, but there's plenty of commentary about how class, apathy, overconfidence in the military, internet popularity, even the lure of fame are too much for various people to put aside for their survival, and how people aren't as prepared as they'd think because survival has been replaced by materialism.

Realistically, this should be read after the Zombie Survival Guide - you don't have to, as it's accessible to anyone, but reading WWZ afterwards suddenly puts it into perspective that little bit more.

Read this book, it may save your life - so move to Conwy NOW!!!

5 out of 5 stars

Homework of the Living Dead! May 21, 2008
Max Brooks knows his stuff! Not only does he have an obvious and deep affection for the Romero-lore zombie genre, but also an in-depth knowledge of politics, geography, history and military matters. World War Z combines all of these elements, charting a living dead apocalypse from Patient Zero through to aftermath and rebuilding in a way that is never less than gripping, convincing and so rich in compelling detail and believable narrative that were the subject matter not so fantastical, this could pass for a legimate historical account.

Brooks' gift for logical extrapolation is fabulous, such as the ineffectiveness of modern battlefield weapons and intel against the living dead at the Battle of Yonkers, or soldiers later being given bite-proof kevlar uniforms with no camouflage (what's the point?) and new semi-automatic only weapons to encourage headshots (with wooden stocks, the plastics industry having been placed on hold!)

Moreover, in best zombie tradition, it makes you think, and often affects you greatly. The use of an adapted plan from South Africa formulated to suppress apartheid revolution is one such masterstroke. The mystery of North Korea, the entire population of which appears to disappear underground, fate unknown, is another. The conclusion that the great mass of "non-essential" survivors should be used as zombie bait to allow the escape of a chosen minority based on skills, intellect and breeding potential is as chilling as it is darkly logical.

There is even room for humour, as an unnamed but obvious Paris Hilton and clique are butchered in a sadistic swipe at reality TV and the cult of celebrity. His version of the response of the online community to the crisis also predates, and is much more convincing than George Romero's in Diary of the Dead. All in all, his anecdotal structure brings what is in effect almost the end of the world down to a very personal and emotive level - from profiteers and traffickers offering false hope and spreading the infection to rearguards knowing they are being left to die - every story is filled with a dramatic insight into the worst and best of humanity.

This isn't a book with several highlights - this is a book that is all highlights, a real page-turner. Along with Kirkman and Adlard's The Walking Dead comics, literate zombie fans have never had it so good, or so intelligently presented.

5 out of 5 stars

Chillingly Effective May 11, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

Compiled by an unnamed narrator, furious at having the personal accounts he collated for a UN investigation into the causes and progress of the War excised from the final report, WORLD WAR Z is essentially a compilation of stories from individuals who describe what happened to them before, during and after the war. It's a brilliant device and one that makes the telling of this story chillingly plausible, with Brooks using it to draw out the global nature of the zombie pandemic. He includes 'interviews' with an extraordinary range of people, from a Chinese village doctor who reported one of the first cases, to an industrialist who sells a fake cure, to an American soldier who tried to hold back the hordes, to people charged with reconstructing the devastated countries after the zombies have been driven to defeat. The narration has a peculiar documentary feel to it - sometimes, the survivors tell their stories in the form of a monologue, sometimes the narrator intersperses it with questions, but rather than being distracting, this helps to make the book even more effective.

The book's biggest strength is the careful consideration that Brooks gives as to how a zombie infection would spread and the effect it would have on the population. He picks out people and organ trafficking in the Far East to show how the infection could cross continents and satirises the media, with their constant focus on cures and progress to show panic whipping up amongst the general population, together with the interests of businesses seeking to use the plague as an additional way of making money. He also imagines how some regimes will use brutality to restore order and for me, the sections recounting the decimations used to quell mutiny in the Russian army are the most chillingly observed in the book.

Some readers may find some of the survival stories a little far fetched e.g. the story of the elderly, blind Japanese man was slightly too much for me, but is nevertheless entertaining and exciting. As a Brit, I also had a quibble about the section from an English survivor who I felt to be a little too stereotypically upper class to be believable and a section from an Australian survivor describes the English as 'limeys' rather than 'poms'. But these are picky points that certainly didn't detract from my enjoyment of the text.

5 out of 5 stars

Astoundingly good April 26, 2008
This is, without doubt, the best work of zombie fiction I've encountered. Gripping, beautifully written and well paced. The characterisation is convincing and the storyline captivating.

Essential reading for every zombie obsessive and anyone intending to make it through the imminent zombie apocalypse.

4 out of 5 stars

Terrific April 24, 2008
This is a mocumentary style horror book concerning a war between the living and zombies. Utterly pointless but highly entertaining and stylishly put together. If horror and in particular zombies are your thing then you will absolutely love this. Not a gruesome or gory book and at times quite intelligent. Recommended for pure escapism.