World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks
World War Z is an account of the zombie apocalypse, told by the survivors in interviews. Max Brooks ladles out the details of the zombie apocalypse in digestible, brain-sized morsels. I found it chilling and realistic as far as zombie apocalypses go. Instead of a killfest, it's more of a thinker.
The book is presented as a collection of oral interviews with key survivors of the global war against the undead, conducted and compiled by the unnamed narrator (an agent of the UN's postwar commission). Contrary to the geocentrism of most novels concerned with the end of humanity, Brooks is concerned with a World War - his interviewees come from various countries, and their combined testimonies all provide an insight into changes that swept the globe as its result.
Praises:
“Will spook you for real.”—The New York Times Book Review
“Possesses more creativity and zip than entire crates of other new fiction titles. Think Mad Max meets The Hot Zone. . .. It’s Apocalypse Now, pandemic-style. Creepy but fascinating.”—USA Today
“Will grab you as tightly as a dead man’s fist. A.”—Entertainment Weekly