Book Review: World War Z
World War Z by Max Brooks
Brooks writes this, his second zombie book following The Zombie Survival Guide, as an oral history from the viewpoint of a representative from a UN Postwar commission. The war in postwar being "The Zombie War." This allows Brooks to apply a grand scale to his tale as we read the transcripts from this representative's interviews which provides us accounts in China, Tibet, Greece, Brazil, Barbados, Israel, Palestine, the US, Finland, Antarctica, India, Russia, Greenland, South Africa, Ireland, Ukraine, Canada, South Korea, Japan, Cuba, Australia, Chile, Siberia, and in Earth orbit.
Brooks adapts to the different perspectives with great aplomb, moving between doctors, different military experiences, politicians, refugees, and survivors of different cultures. Some standouts are the recurring segments with US Army infantryman Todd Wainio who provides an angle from the frontlines of the zombie war in the US, as well as downed fighter pilot Christina Eliopolis's account of sludging her way through a Louisiana swamp on her way to safety. The best segment though may be the detailing of South Africa's "Redeker Plan" by disgraced apartheid-era politician Paul Redeker and its use of acceptable losses.
I've never read a real oral history before (I wouldn't mind reading some Legs McNeil *hint*hint*), just fake ones (thank you, Mark Leyner). I imagine this is a pretty accurate rendition as I enjoyed the style and felt the details on a worldwide endemic made the novel. It may not be high literature, but it is excellent populist fiction that didn't insult my intelligence as well as quick read.
Word is that a World War Z movie is in the works. Although, what this book really begs for is an HBO Band of Brothers-style mini-series bookended by faux interviews with veterans of the zombie war. Word is bond.
Brooks writes this, his second zombie book following The Zombie Survival Guide, as an oral history from the viewpoint of a representative from a UN Postwar commission. The war in postwar being "The Zombie War." This allows Brooks to apply a grand scale to his tale as we read the transcripts from this representative's interviews which provides us accounts in China, Tibet, Greece, Brazil, Barbados, Israel, Palestine, the US, Finland, Antarctica, India, Russia, Greenland, South Africa, Ireland, Ukraine, Canada, South Korea, Japan, Cuba, Australia, Chile, Siberia, and in Earth orbit.
Brooks adapts to the different perspectives with great aplomb, moving between doctors, different military experiences, politicians, refugees, and survivors of different cultures. Some standouts are the recurring segments with US Army infantryman Todd Wainio who provides an angle from the frontlines of the zombie war in the US, as well as downed fighter pilot Christina Eliopolis's account of sludging her way through a Louisiana swamp on her way to safety. The best segment though may be the detailing of South Africa's "Redeker Plan" by disgraced apartheid-era politician Paul Redeker and its use of acceptable losses.
I've never read a real oral history before (I wouldn't mind reading some Legs McNeil *hint*hint*), just fake ones (thank you, Mark Leyner). I imagine this is a pretty accurate rendition as I enjoyed the style and felt the details on a worldwide endemic made the novel. It may not be high literature, but it is excellent populist fiction that didn't insult my intelligence as well as quick read.
Word is that a World War Z movie is in the works. Although, what this book really begs for is an HBO Band of Brothers-style mini-series bookended by faux interviews with veterans of the zombie war. Word is bond.
Labels: book review, max brooks, zombies
posted by justin | 3:00 p.m.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home