World War Z

Max Brooks

Annotation

Brooks, the author of the determinedly straight-faced parody The Zombie Survival Guide (2003), returns in all seriousness to the zombie theme for his second outing, a future history in the style of Theodore Judson’s Fitzpatrick’s War. Brooks tells the story of the world’s desperate battle against the zombie threat with a series of first-person accounts “as told to the author” by various characters around the world. A Chinese doctor encounters one of the earliest zombie cases at a time when the Chinese government is ruthlessly suppressing any information about the outbreak that will soon spread across the globe. The tale then follows the outbreak via testimony of smugglers, intelligence officials, military personnel and many others who struggle to defeat the zombie menace. Despite its implausible premise and choppy delivery, the novel is surprisingly hard to put down. The subtle, and not so subtle, jabs at various contemporary politicians and policies are an added bonus.
  • WORLD WAR Z
    • INTRODUCTION
    • WARNINGS
      • Greater Chongqing, the United Federation of China
      • Lhasa, the People’s Republic of Tibet
      • Meteora, Greece
      • The Amazon Rain Forest, Brazil
      • Bridgetown Harbor, Barbados, West Indies Federation
      • Tel Aviv, Israel
      • Bethlehem, Palestine
    • BLAME
      • Langley, Virginia, USA
      • Vaalajarvi, Finland
      • Vostok Station: Antarctica
      • Amarillo, Texas, USA
      • Troy, Montana, USA
    • THE GREAT PANIC
      • Parnell Air National Guard Base: Memphis, Tennessee, USA
      • Alang, India
      • Topeka, Kansas, USA
      • Khuzhir, Olkhon Island, Lake Baikal, the Holy Russian Empire
      • Bridgetown, Barbados, West Indies Federation
      • Ice City, Greenland
      • Denver, Colorado, USA
    • TURNING THE TIDE
      • Robben Island, Cape Town Province, United States of Southern Africa