World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War

“The Zombie War came unthinkably close to eradicating humanity. Driven by the need to preserve the first hand experiences from those apocalyptic years, while they still exist in living memory, Max Brooks traveled across the planet to find and record the testimony of men, women, and sometimes children who came face to face with the living – or at least, the undead – hell of that terrible time.”



In 2003 The Zombie Survival Guide was published. The tongue-in-cheek “survival manual”, written by Max Brooks, equipped the reader with necessary information on how to endure outbreaks of “Solanum” (the zombie-making disease) to varying degrees of intensity. From isolated incidents to global pandemic, The Zombie Survival Guide contained all the information that a thinking human being would need to avoid being conscripted into the ranks of the undead.


In 2006, World War Z was released, a follow up to Survival Guide in which Max Brooks’ image of the zombie takes on a far darker, more serious tone. The proper title of the volume is World War Z: An Oral History of The Zombie War, and is often abbreviated as WWZ. This review specifically deals with an unabridged audio version of the book.



From the start of the introduction (quoted above) the listener has a pretty good idea of what to expect. This is a book which, while obviously fictional, does an excellent job of convincing you that this stuff actually happened. The story of the Zombie War plays out as a series of interviews with people who managed to survive the plague. Every story is told in the first person, and Brooks does an excellent job of portraying each character as an individual, with their own unique ways of speaking. The use of slang and other defining traits are prominent, and one gets the impression that this is a personal, authentic account.



The audio version stars a full cast of voice actors, featuring Brooks as himself. The stories of foot soldiers, refugees, scientists, and politicians are all conveyed as you think they should be. From the swearing and laid back demeanor of the veteran infantryman(“Yeah, come on Zack, let’s ****in’ do this”), to the practiced English of the Chinese doctor, it becomes easy to immerse yourself in the life of a human being on post-zombie Earth.



One story which I particularly enjoyed was that of an English artist, interviewed while sketching a medieval castle. He talks briefly about castles and their history – what made them useful, and why they were no longer practical as a means of defense against outside attack. He then goes on to tell how many restored castles became refuges during the plague, with hundreds of humans held up inside, fending off Zack (the nickname given to zombies in general) with firearms as long as the ammunition held out. He then explains how when the bullets were all gone, they resorted to using the antique medieval weapons which were on display inside the castle. The man being interviewed expresses his fondness for the claymore, and carries the blade at his side as he recounts his experiences.

This is one example of how Brooks takes the pop-culture zombie and fuses it with the real world. His portrayal of human ingenuity and the will to survive are convincing and intriguing, told in a way that makes you ask yourself, “what would I do?”



Things that you might not have considered previously concerning a zombie outbreak are key points in the story, from religious viewpoints, economic consequences, where one is likely to find safety, and so on, are all examined in a way that gives life to an otherwise overplayed premise. This is not Resident Evil, Shaun of the Dead or I Am Legend. This is all three rolled into one, lacking in neither humor nor epic scale.




If I were to give World War Z a numerical rating, it would be a high one. Little can be found to complain about here, and if you’re a fan of zombie stories, or just cool stuff in general, this is something you’ll want to check out.



(According to Wikipedia, a film adaptation is in the works, and is being produced by Brad Pitt’s Plan B Entertainment. Production is supposedly set to begin sometime during 2009)