Book review: World War Z

World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

On several occasions, I told guys that I read Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, and they recommended World War Z to me. I assume they didn't realize I read PPandZ because of my fascination with Jane Austen...

Nevertheless, I had enough recommendations to make this one a priority and I am so glad I did. It was brilliant! I'm not always a fan of horror, but I always appreciate a well-told story. I enjoyed the conceit and narrative style. I was amazed at all of the different points of view, experiences, and countries, and the way it all came together to tell the story. I was delighted that the last section revisited some of the interviewees and revealed what happened to them (or what they had learned). It was also cool that the book wasn't specific about the time period. It could be 10 years from now or 100 years from now.

I will say that I don't know how well this will translate in to film, and I don't particularly need to see some of the more graphic descriptions projected on the big screen. There was also quite a bit of swearing, but that's par for the course in any book that relies fairly heavily on military action.

This is one I'll probably read again. A fun and clever read... though I don't recommend you read it before going to bed, unless you want to stay up late listening for the tell-tale moan warning you that a zombie is coming for you!


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