The human race was almost eradicated during the Zombie War. After the ten-year ordeal, Max Brooks was compelled to preserve the experiences of those who survived. He traveled across the USA and throughout the world. His travels brought him to cities now decimated that once boasted populations of up to thirty million, and to the most remote and inhospitable areas of the world. During this time, he recorded the testimony of men, women, and children who came face-to-face with the undead threat.

Written in Question and Answer format, Max captures the humanity of the war perfectly. This book eliminates the question "What If?" These accounts are from survivors who endured great hardships and terrifying situations. From the Battle of Yonkers to the tunnels under Paris, the stories are sometimes scary, sometimes sad, but all too real.

For instance, there is an account of a girl who moves North with her parents during "The Great Panic". We learn that she has a loving father and a stern mother, but after their own hardship the family unit starts to fall apart and her father becomes a completely different man. Reading about these changes almost brought me to tears.

While the book is graphic with its descriptions of blood and gore, it's much more graphic in depicting human nature. When the warnings came about, the American government had the means necessary to inform and protect its citizens, but instead it lied and gave misinformation while doing nothing to stop the threat. We also read of a pharmacist that is commissioned to create an antidote for the disease. While he lives in the lap of luxury making millions, people are dying left and right.

The Zombie Survival Guide came out before this one, but it seems that most people blew it off as satirical. This book is anything but. The descriptions of the zombies and their moans was done really well, and the accounts of the soldiers who were on the front lines are almost stories unto themselves.

Keeping the format of the Zombie King himself - George A. Romero - this book is NOT solely about zombies. It's about people of all ages and all walks of life trying to cope with a situation that will either bring them together or tear them apart. Again, the humanity is captured perfectly.

The best thing about this book is that before it was even published, Paramount Pictures bought the rights for a movie. According to IMDB, it's scheduled for a 2008 release.