Book Review: Zombies of the World

Title: Zombies of the World
Author: Ross Payton
Publisher: Slang Design
Release Date: 06/15/2011
ISBN: 0982726503







If you're like me, you probably never knew that there were different types of zombies other than "dead" & "really dead". Ignorance of the different species can not only be deadly but it can also lead to the extinction of several rare & intriguing zombie kinds. By shooting first & asking questions later, you might be missing out on the chance to watch the the well choreographed Dancing Zombie. Or you could anger a Revenant, which is insanely hard to kill & will most likely end with you being a greasy smear on the pavement.

Fortunately for you & I, this book covers at least 20 species of the undead. We're given not only a brief synopsis of the specific species's history but also images telling us where they can be located & how plentiful they are. (Joining a zombie sight seeing tour is discouraged without properly checking their credentials, year the company was formed, & their CorpseFax, which details all of the skirmishes, fatalities, & infections they've had. More than one person has lost their lives by signing up with a fly-by-night zombie tour!) The book also lists which humans (living ones, not dead ones) you should try to avoid if you're trapped in a zombie attack. If you're reading this book (or this review) then your chances of survival are already far better than that of the uninformed citizen.

We're also treated to a brief but highly informative history of the zombie race in general, starting from its ancient beginnings to the present day. Author Payton also treats us to a bright, hopeful vision of the future where zombie science will eradicate death, illness, & enable us to lead better and happier lives.

However if you're one of the skeptics who insist that zombies aren't real & that this book is nothing but a novelty item, you might still find this guide useful for role-playing games. It's a valuable resource that you can use to heighten your game playing experience. It might also save your life when the "fictional" zombies break in during your Friday gaming night.

5 out of 5 stars

(Reader Copy provided by the author.)

As a bonus I do want to say that more & more home owners are seeing the appeal of having Dancing Zombies congregate on their lawn to perform surprisingly well choreographed dances. While the North American Necrological Research Institute (NANRI) does not recommend encouraging these displays (mostly due to horrific public overreaction), it does recognize that certain displays are far more likely to appeal to the Dancing Zombie.