Sit Back and Listen to the Sounds of the Zombie War

I spend a lot of time in the car, around three hours or so a day. To take my mind off traffic, homework, and the weekly semi that overturns or runs into a guardrail, I listen to books on tape. So far this semester I have listened to Jane Ayre, The Body Snatchers, The Shipping News, and Notes from a Small Island. In tribute to the high holiday of Halloween, I started a new audio book today: World War Z. Written by Max Brooks, author of the high concept The Zombie Survival Handbook and son of Mel Brooks, World War Z did not seem very promising. But pickings are slim among the audio books at the library and I’m willing to try almost anything. By the end of my fourth year at Purdue I’ll be reduced to listening to Bill Graham and Men are From Mars, Women are from Venus on my daily trips.

 By the time I hit the Purdue campus I was hooked. I sat in my car for 15 minutes until the interview I was listening to was over. That’s how the book is set up: a series of interviews from people who have survived World War Z or the Zombie War. With a cast of characters from all over the world, it’s easy to forget the story is about a fictional war with the undead. Testimonies from the CIA, foot soldiers, mercenaries, and political leaders could be about any war of our time. Then they start talking about the horror of fighting an enemy that not only shows no fear, but physically can’t experience fear, and your back in the world of Romero.

 But the wonderfully researched storyline (Brooks’ grasp of current world politics is wonderful) is not the only hook for this story. The audio book is presented as reader’s theater, with spot on accents, creepy atmospheric music, and subtle, anguished performances. It really stands out after weeks of listening to a high pitched man’s voice recite the tormented prose of Ann Proulx. It’s unlikely this book would be so fun and engrossing without the care that was put into the production and performances. According to the ever useful Wikipedia, WWZ won the 2007 award for best multi-voice performance. I have no idea how stiff the competition must be for this prestigious award, but WWZ deserves it. Sadly, the audio book only has select interviews from the book (about six hours worth), a bit ironic considering the interviewer’s (played by Max Brooks himself) complaint that the government cut interviews from his original report, which was the catalyst for this book.

 A film version is set to be released late next year, which I hope will mimic the documentary style of the novel and audio book. But until then I suggest snagging this great audio book to ease you though the tortures of early morning traffic and long, lonely road trips.