I was an immense fan of Kim Paffenroth’s last book, GOSPEL OF THE LIVING DEAD, the non-fiction study of faith in the world of George Romero’s zombie films. It was an intriguing look at the often-controversial fictional world, but it also was authoritative and entertaining. But would his love, knowledge and insight of the genre translate as well in his fictional take on the nightmarish world of the living dead? I’d have to say, boy, does it ever.
DYING TO LIVE is a very different type of zombie story: one that focuses on the day-to-day lives of those that are left to deal with the menace, and not just in a self-defense, let’s-exploit-as-much-gore-as-possible-for-the-sake-of-gore way. No, instead it deals with the interpersonal lives of a group of survivors in a small ramshackle community and how they are trying to start a new civilized society with so much trauma and rot around them.
Told from the point of view of their latest community edition, their rituals, their laws, their food production – everything that logically would help a group of survivors continue on – is laid out here, with a calm, peaceful approach. Even when faced with immediate danger, the characters take ease in the debraining of the dead, and even face moralistic quandaries that last longer than a few lines.
The only real problem is toward the end, when a few people on a salvaging ritual are kidnapped by a group of deranged, near-stereotypical prison inmates who have made their own community filled with rape and prison wine. The introductory of this seemed a little unnecessary to me, as it would have been much more interesting to continue on with the basic life of the community, but it is rationalized as how the zombies are not the real monsters – humanity is.
But we already knew that. However, it doesn’t ruin the book at all. It’s compellingly written and oddly powerful – just out of place.
In addition to being the second book I’ve reviewed from Paffenroth, this is the second book I’ve reviewed from Permuted Press – the first being the exceptional DOWN THE ROAD: ON THE LAST DAY – with which I have been completely floored. Their original, humanist takes on these tired themes are a real treat that I wish Hollywood would start to emulate, with DYING TO LIVE used as the blueprint. –Louis Fowler
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THIS AUTHOR:
• GOSPEL OF THE LIVING DEAD: GEORGE ROMERO’S VISIONS OF HELL ON EARTH by Kim Paffenroth
Related posts:
- Live Girls
- Killing Yourself to Live: 85% of a True Story
- Dying to Be Famous
- Gasping for Airtime: Two Years in the Trenches of Saturday Night Live
- The Undead: Zombie Anthology
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