Zzzzzzz, the end of the alphabet so I am talking about one of the “end of society as we know it” possibilities. Granted, it might be a stretch…but you never know! I don’t know what it is about the zombie apocalypse that has me and a bunch of other people frothing at the mouth, but I can’t seem to read enough about it. It isn’t the gross factor, it isn’t the weird plague thing either, I think it is that normal people suddenly have to survive in the weirdest of times. Killing people that are no longer people, wrapping their heads around the idea that it is ok and there is no moral issue. Dealing with loss on a global scale and picking up the possible pieces afterwards. Psychologically it is insane and fascinating! It always intrigues me how people handle being in the moment of the possibility of death, terror, fear etc. Do they tackle the problem till it is safe to break down? Or do they break down in the face of the problem? What is the in-between?
It seems most of these books, that I enjoy anyway, have some humor to juxtapose against the horrors, snarky lead characters, difficult choices and emotional angst. There are a few with some questionable romance…zombie romance. Um, not so much. I can handle the grossness and killing, but somehow I draw the line at zombie sex. Ewwwww.
If you like zombie and/or plague books, which ones do you recommend? If you don’t, is it the grossness factor, or the emotional issues you don’t like to read about?
By the way –
Thanks for hanging out with me on my own personal journey through the alphabet. I didn’t really stick with any particular theme, but I sure had a good time and hope you did as well! I didn’t visit all the participating blogs but plan on working through the rest over the next couple of months. April got away from me and suddenly it feels like I can barely post, let alone visit or even respond to comments reliably! Hopefully I will be back to normal business soon. Cheers!! – Elisa
I’ve never read a zombie book, but all the zombie films I’ve watched are a bit pants and predictable.
yeah, predictable yes, but it is interesting to see what they do with it. If you want a good zombie read, try Feed by Mira Grant. Kind of predictable, kind of not but a crazy fun time 🙂
Great challenge dear friend! Are Zombies real? ;-P
YES! I am one today!! I forgot to mention that. 🙂
I think we all wonder if we have the psychological makeup to be a survivor. Stories of real survivors are also fascinating and each person usually has a very driving reason to survive the ordeal they are experiencing. My last zombie read was finished about two days ago, one of those books I didn’t want to stop reading, and I was resentful to turn out the light. “Allison Hewitt is Trapped” a zombie novel by Madeline Roux. A zombie outbreak traps a group of employees in their workplace, as are people all over the world. there is one computer network still up and Allison blogs about their journey, eventually finding other survivors and emotional support as she agonizes over her morality, or immorality, because she is able to make hard choices, killing to survive. It is a story of friendship, family, all the ugliness and all the beauty that we humans bring to this world.
Glad you enjoyed Allison, I thought it was fun but she got a little too blood-thirsty in one spot which made me uncomfortable. Can’t wait to talk to you about it. 🙂
Zombies and me? Nah. No can do 🙂 But I appreciate that others (like you) like them. Maybe it is the lack of humanity that gets me. I’ve really enjoyed your posts. Maybe next year I’ll join you.
That would be awesome! 🙂
I like Max Brooks’ zombie books. Also, there was a zombie anthology… gah, I can’t remember what it was called now (I’m too lazy to go find it on my bookshelf) erm… when I remember I’ll come back and tell you lol. Also, Breathers by S.G. Browne is pretty good if you like smart zombies. I’ve written a fair bit of zombie fiction myself, including one ‘erotic’ story. That was a real challenge LOL
Cool, I have world war z on my shelf to read. Might have to pick that one up sooner rather than later 🙂
I checked. The anthology I was talking about is called The Living Dead and it was edited by John Joseph Adams –> http://www.johnjosephadams.com/
Thank you so much! I will put that on my list 🙂
I don’t need to read zombie books because I live near a few of them and have experienced it first hand 😉
Congrats on getting to the end of the challenge – this month has gone so fast!
I have to be careful with the zombie books and movies, because OMG! Scary! If I want to sleep at nights, I need to take my zombies in very small doses. 🙂
I’ve enjoyed reading your posts during A to Z, Elisa, and I’ll be back to catch those I’ve missed when I’m able to function like a normal human being again. Whee! We’ve made it!
I am SO HAPPY! April always ends up nuts at work too and I just end up in the white water crashing around hoping to find the right way up for a breather. Hope you find your right way up soon into May as well, congratulations!! wooop!
A-Z blog challenge, what a great idea!
Join us next year! It is quite fun, even though it is a lot of work too 🙂
I would love to have a go at it, when do you do it, is there a particular month when you start?
I love my zombie books with snark and humor as well. Even the romance with Warm Bodies was pretty…interesting.
Congratulations on completing the A to Z Challenge. Great effort. I’ve never read a zombie book, but have enjoyed watching the odd zombie film. Great Z choice 🙂