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 from those apocalyptic years, 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. -Goodreads
Review: About a year ago I read the physical copy of this book and definitely enjoyed it. Not mind blowing, but good. There is no question that this book is better off as an audio experience, it is an oral history after all. Listening to World War Z was absolutely fantastic! The main role of the reporter is narrated by the author himself which was a very nice touch. For the rest of the roles there was a full cast which added a distinct feeling to each character that isn’t always found in audiobook narration

As for the story itself, it’s a pretty interesting take on a zombie novel as it focuses more on the hows and the whys then your traditional gruesome fight for survival. It’s the planets development as whole that we get to experience rather than that of any one character. Not that there aren’t some really interesting physiological elements that would understandably pop up in people who had survived the zombie war but they just aren’t part of the bigger picture.

Some of the stories you will hear focus on day to day survival and the plans that people came up with, some successful and some not. Other stories are from a decidedly military perspective. My favorites were the ones that focused on those in various governments across the world throughout the crisis. Big decisions had to be made and the loss of life brought on by those decisions sit heavily on the survivors minds. It’s dark and twisty in the very best way. Terribly realistic considering that there are zombies involved.

About this time next year there will be a third option for the World War Z experience, you’ll be able to go see it in theaters, starring the one and only Brad Pitt. Unfortunately, it will probably be difficult to capture the real essence of this book since it jumps around so much. It will probably still be a great zombie movie, but if you want the real World War Z: An oral history of the zombie apocalypse experience, go with the audiobook.

Buy the audiobook @Amazon (US) @Amazon (CAN)

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Second Opinions:
@Axiom’s Edge
@Mel’s Random Reviews
@Book Twirps