Max Brooks - World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War

Pros: powerful post-apocalyptic novel
Cons: very little variation in the voices of the interviewees

The old saying would have it that "armies prepare to fight the war they just finished." That does seem borne out by recent history: WWII vs. Korea; Korea vs. Vietnam; Vietnam vs. the Gulf Wars... perhaps the military mind can only ...

Pros: "Eyewitness" accounts, big themes, Brooks' writing, cast performances...
Cons: Language might be too strong for delicate ears...

I've never like zombies. I haven't ever seen "Night of the Living Dead" or "28 Days Later" or anything where you need to blow something's brains out to kill its undead self. So when friends recommended Max Brooks' novel "World War Z: An Oral History of ...

Pros: Well-written, great audiobook
Cons: None

World War Z is a collection of war stories from a fictional zombie war that swept the planet sometime in the near future. It is from author Max Brooks, who is the son of famed writer/director Mel Brooks, and is the follow-up to his wildly ...

Pros: Well written, imaginative, absorbing, entertaining, and thought provoking.
Cons: None.

An inexplicable and ultimately fatal plague has suddenly swept the globe, leaving horror and tragedy in its wake as a grim reminder of how fragile our presumed safety really is. This shocking plague is far from an ordinary virus; this mysterious illness ...

Pros: Zombie wars are shown from many different POV's across the world.
Cons: Some stories could have been elaborated on.

Someone had told me this book would be hard to follow without first reading Brooks’ other book, The Zombie Survival Guide. Well, I had already finished WWZ before I even realized there was another book. I followed it just fine, so if you haven’t read The ...

Pros: The story covers the entire world instead of just the US.
Cons: Some of the character stories could have been expanded upon.

I purchased this book only after getting the abridged audio book as a gift. I am not a fan of abridged anything and I also wanted to read the book for myself before hearing an audio version. I'll admit I didn't have any great expectations when it came ...

Pros: Completely involving from the first tale. A remarkable cast
Cons: Sore ears from having my ipod glued to them until the tale ended.

Max Brooks has created a world where humanity is struggling to recover from a zombie uprising and in doing so offers glimpses into human nature that make the reader really examine humanity's will to survive and what we are capable of in the name of ...

Pros: Short stories. A glimpse into a possible future.
Cons: The stories are rather short.

This book is rather good. It is written as though it really is someone going around and gathering up oral accounts of something that actually happened. While the idea of zombies may be science fiction the idea of a world wide epidemic is quite real. I ...

Pros: funny, smart, entertaining, original
Cons: not long enough

What if the entire world was united in a single cause? What if that cause was fighting a serious disease outbreak? And what if that disease was a…ZOMBIE PLAGUE! This is the premise of Max Brooks’, son of famed director Mel Brooks, book World ...

Pros: Very well written a world view of the zombie event
Cons: Could be a little scary for younger readers

This was a very well written book lots of details and felt like the even of the zombie war took place in present times. Very good read and could convince you that zombies could attack the world.The books events cover the lead the out break of the zombie ...

Pros: The pace, the "eyewitness" accounts, the fact/fiction blend, everything! A triumph for Max Brooks!
Cons: Brad Pitt's movie company bought the rights to the book :-(

A truly exceptional Zombie novel against which others will be judged. Phenomenally well written and researched, this fictional account of a worldwide plague of zombies is truly an astoundingly enjoyable read from start to finish. Done in an interview format, the book is a collection of stories from the survivors of the Zombie War. The accounts, which at times can be anywhere from downright terrifying to enlightening and hopeful, also offer thought-provoking parallels to events and decisions in our present world, and show both the triumphs and failures of our collective governments policies past and present. A fantastic piece of fiction that will also provide enough food for thought to keep us non-zombie readers hungry for (much) more. A remarkable achievement.

Pros: Original and captivating.  Max Brooks is the king of the zombie genre.
Cons: Where is the sequel???

This was the first zombie novel I had read and I've been a fanatical Deadhead ever since.  I still have yet to find another zombie novel to rival it.  Max Brooks has brilliantly written this book as a collection of eye-witness interviews about the war to end all wars - and nearly ended mankind.  Each interviewee describes his or her own experience with the zombie plague that swept our planet.  By the end, you are almost convinced that this war actually occurred.