Day 09 – A book you thought you wouldn’t like but ended up loving

This one section actually bought to mind two books in the same “genre” if you will. Both of which made me realize how close minded I can actually be, and I am forever grateful to one of my friends and my sister who urged me to read the first book though I don’t know where I got the second from.

World War Z by Max Brooks.

This book made me cringe at first, before I even started reading it. Why on earth would I want to read a book about zombies? I don’t even overly like zombies. They’re not the best nightmarish monsters out there.

And yet, this book gripped me. It was history, fictional history of a world gone awry and yet it felt so damn real. It was written in a sort of respectful manner in regards to understanding the intelligence of the audience without a single moment dumbed down. This book demands that you feel fear, because World War Z has arrived, and you will be taken by it.

I had the pleasure to meet Max Brooks at FanExpo in Toronto, and that only solidified my love for this novel. He was so warm and personable, teasing me as he saw I had three copies to be signed (one for my brother in law and one for my sister) as well as my own. When I told him this was my first zombie book he told me he was shocked, but honoured.

Aaaand the other book in this genre that I didn’t expect to love iiiis…

My Life as a White Trash Zombie by Diana Rowland

Apparently I was a little late to the Diana Rowland party, and I’ll admit I still haven’t read her other series.

I didn’t want to like this book, I’m not sure why I was so against it but this is a cover that demands you take a look at it.

Angel Crawford did not impress me in the slightest as a character at first, not because she wasn’t well written but because there was just..something that didn’t mesh with me.

However I was soon pulled in, more by her flaws than her strengths I will admit. It was nice to like a character because she is flawed, as opposed to demanding more perfection.

It’s a quick read, but it’s fun. It’s funny and clever, at times horrific and yet I sped through this book and the following two and waited eagerly for the fourth which I received just this week. If zombies aren’t your thing, maybe this could be your gateway book, because it’s certainly wonderful.