Quick take
Released in 2006, this chilling account of a zombie apocalypse focuses more on the living than the undead.
Good to know
Multiple viewpoints
Famous author
Brainy
Now a movie
Synopsis
We survived the zombie apocalypse, but how many of us are still haunted by that terrible time? We have (temporarily?) defeated the living dead, but at what cost? Told in the haunting and riveting voices of the men and women who witnessed the horror firsthand, World War Z is the only record of the apocalyptic years.
The Zombie War came unthinkably close to eradicating humanity. Max Brooks, driven by the urgency of preserving the acid-etched first-hand experiences of the survivors, traveled across the United States of America and throughout the world, from decimated cities that once teemed with upwards of thirty million souls to the most remote and inhospitable areas of the planet. He recorded the testimony of men, women, and sometimes children who came face-to-face with the living, or at least the undead, hell of that dreadful time. World War Z is the result. Never before have we had access to a document that so powerfully conveys the depth of fear and horror, and also the ineradicable spirit of resistance, that gripped human society through the plague years.
Member ratings (1,929)
Kelsey W.
Sequim, WA
Nothing in common with the movie but a wonderful masterpiece on its own. I loved the diversity of people “interviewed” and how the story was smooth and easy to follow even with the multiple narrators
Jennifer P.
Portland, OR
I am a fan of apocalyptic stories and this one is by far a favorite. The “author” basically interviews survivors of the Zombie War from all over the world. Each story could be a whole book in itself.
Kate S.
PORT ROYAL, VA
I am normally not a Zombie story fan, but this is not a typical Zombie story. It’s so smart and heart-breaking in that I really think it captures the reality of human nature in crisis, the good & bad.
Carmen R.
PITTSBURGH, PA
I loved the journalistic approach, enhanced by the book’s organization and writing perfectly set to each multiple POV. Spellbinding and entertains as an apocalyptic zombie event can be. 1.18-19.22
Karon H.
Forest City, IA
Found the perspective of how cultural norms (what is acceptable and what is not) for us to survive very intriguing, Loved the format of the various perspectives of this disaster. Very thought provok