World War Z

[mcity]

• Film: World War Z(softcover)
  
• Director: Max Brooks
  
• Publisher: Crown
  
• Release: 12-09-06
  
• Finished: 9-2-08
  
• Tie-in: Movie (in production)
  
• Catchphrase: "BRAIIINNSS"
  
• Pitch: The end of the world as we know it.

This is probably the scariest book I have ever read.

The premise of the book is a ground's eye view of the, quote, Zombie War, told in the form of interviews with the survivors. The authour is a guy who interviewed these people for a UN report, but found the actual report too dry for his tastes. Brooks gets this out of the way in the prologue.

Of note is Brooks' attention to detail; he goes to such an extent as explaining why zombies eyes look white. He details specific experiences of several very different people, and pulls it off pretty much perfectly. One of the most terrifying bits is the only time, ever, I have been so disturbed by a book that I almost put it down and walked away. And that includes Mr. King's work.

The tone is heavily military, for good reason; many of the interviewees are veterans, in some form or another, of the war. This leads, oddly, to a somewhat blunt approach and some of the most moving scenes in the book. I had already started to cast characters in my mind by the finish. The merc should be David Keith. They should get Djimon Hounsou and Pauly Perrette in there too. Yeah, yeah, that's the stuff. Of especial note is the almost-fanservice bit with an otaku.

In short(ha!) I recommend it heartily, especially if you enjoyed The Zombie Survival Guide.
5 out of 5. Not at the top, not yet, but close.