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Kaiju Preservation Society Book Review

I love John Scalzi’s books! There. I am revealing my bias up front, for all the world to see. Despite my history of enjoying Scalzi’s books, I don’t usually track his new releases very closely, therefore, his excellent Kaiju Preservation Society novel snuck up and bit me. Here is my Kaiju Preservation Society Book Review.

I actually had heard of this title, but it took a friend posting about it on social media to motivate me to read it. Being rather cheap, I rarely buy books anymore, I checked out a digital copy of the book from my local library system (Did you know that the King County (WA) Library System is third in THE WORLD in digital downloads? Neither did I. Wow!)

Anyway, after downloading the digital version of the book (Mr. Scalzi, sorry I did not buy it), I began reading it and I could scarcely put it down. Ok that is an old-fashioned phrase from when I would actually, physically hold onto a book made of actual paper, but I think you get the meaning, right?

Back to the book: Without giving away too much spoiler-like stuff, our main character (yes, the protagonist) is Jamie Gray, a failed academic who, in the early days of The Pandemic (yes, a COVID-era novel—YES!) finds himself helplessly in the tender mercies of New York venture capitalism. Can you say downsized? Anyway this leads him to a new job with the Kaiju Preservation Society.

Even the most casual sci-fi fan probably knows that Kaiju is a Japanese term for, how shall we put it…Godzilla-like creatures. Without going into too much detail (don’t want to spoil it for you), these critters exist…somewhere hard to get to, and Jamie is recruited to try to preserve them.

That is pretty much it for plot summary. Yes, go read it. Why? Ok, here are the reasons I liked it:

1. Kaiju are cool. Scalzi’s creativity in creating his Kaiju-verse is clever, as his how these animals get their individual names. Yes, there is a Kaiju named Kevin!
2. He gets the angst and uncertainty of the Pandemic down right. He, and we, lived through it, so that is not a real surprise.
3. Humor. Lots of low-key humor, seen in the regular interactions Jamie has with roommates, co-workers, and, yes, the bad guys.
4. Speaking of bad guys (yes, the dreaded Antagonists), there are no real surprises other than the fact that even the main bad guy is almost relatable to regular folks. This is a theme of a lot of Scalzi’s work throughout his books.
5. The science part of Scalzi’s sci-fi sounds logical. For a non-science major, that may not mean much, but if it makes sense to me, then it should for you as well. Plus, the original social media recommendation came from a high school science teacher, so…yeah.

Scalzi’s page on Wikipedia lists this book as a “stand-alone novel,” so we may or may not see a sequel. The book ends with a real conclusion, but it leaves an opening for another book. I do hope we get a sequel.

I highly recommend this one for anyone who wants/needs a good read. Let me know what you think in the comments.

Hey, you are still here. Cool. I have other book reviews on this site as well. Enjoy!

Analysis and Commentary on Stanley Kunitz’s “Snakes of September” Poem

When I first realized this poem was about snakes in a garden, my first assumption was that the theme would be around good vs. evil, as in The Snake in The Garden, of Biblical lore.

While this does not appear to be that sort of snake and garden relationship, the use of words and sounds in this poem does seem to reinforce the human mind’s sometimes automatic defense mechanisms and stereotypes about snakes. For the record, I do NOT like snakes…ugh!

Words and phrases such as “rustling,” “whisper,” “a shadow,” “torpor of blood,” “slipped,” “nether world,” and “deceptive,” all evoke negative thoughts of snaky sneakery as they slither out of their green hallows to slip once again into our world of order and gardened plots.

The poet refers at one points to the snake presence in “that spoiled …garden,” but juxtaposed to this garden, the snakes are welcome visitors (renters/squatters?) in his cultivated “green brocade.”

And, unlike the infamous snake of yore who, in some versions, hung down from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil to tempt Eve, these more copacetic snakes are just hanging around on a “north-country spruce,” like a couple of upside-down dogs, just waiting to be petted. The poet takes our base assumptions and turns them around. Instead of the Devil in snakeskin, we have Fido and Spot just chilling…literally, as the poet explains that the “torpor of blood,” that afflicts these cold-blooded critters makes them a bit logy as the heat of the day escapes into the twilight of the eve.

Part of my reading of the poet’s actual real-life relationship (and the torpor of the blood meaning), I got from an NPR article on Stanley Kunitz at https://www.npr.org/sections/krulwich/2013/09/05/218543796/wild-things-hanging-from-spruce-trees. This was a great article that explained the history of the gardener’s relationship with his snake buddies. Reading that article really fleshed out the meaning of the poem for me, and also highlighted my original concept of the poet’s intentional use of snakes and gardens to turn the Genesis story on its head. I still would never pet a snake though…yuck!

Like this poetry review? We have more poetry reviews and commentaries for you!

Star Trek Las Vegas 57 Con: Fan Review

This year’s Star Trek extravaganza in Las Vegas (#STLV57) is now in the books. I had a chance to take part in the festivities from start to finish this time. Here are, in my mind, some of the highlights of this great event put on by Creation Entertainment.

First though, let us go over the big elephant in the room: The SAG-AFTRA strike! The strike began a couple weeks before the con opened, and there was a lot of angst among fans and STLV con-goers about how the strike may affect our fun.

Armin Shimerman (AKA Quark), was a leader online in getting valid information to the fans. He did his research, and reported back to fans via social media that actors COULD attend, but would not be able to discuss Trek (or any “struck” work or productions) in the on-stage panels. Photo Ops and Autograph sessions were authorized. Ok, I, as a fan, could live with that. My big deal at these cons is to get a picture taken with my favorite stars, so that was still a go. And, frankly, a lot of the time, the actors on stage discuss a lot of non-Trek things anyway. William Shatner (Kirk) and George Takei (Sulu) are among my favorites in telling all sorts of non-Trekkie stories. So, STLV was still on!

A few actors, most notably Kate Mulgrew (Janeway), publicly declared she would not attend in solidarity with the strike, but no other major star followed suit (thankfully). I had my photo op and autograph with her last year, anyway!

Now, on the STLV 57…Here are my big takeaways on this year’s con:

Trek Stars Galore: Many popular Trek stars came to STLV (as well as a lot of the Orville cast) and interacted with fans. In my experience, the actors seemed genuinely happy to see the fans (when standing for photo ops, for instance). One cool thing is the ability to interact and talk with the actors in the Vendor’s Room. Many of the stars had tables there and that is where many of them signed autographs and had selfie photos taken with fans. Here are my photos with Garret Wang (forever Ensign Kim), and Christina Chong (La’an).

Christina Chong (La'an) and fan at #STLV57 — Christina Chong (La’an) and fan at #STLV57

Garrett Wang (Ensign Kim) and fan at #STLV57

The Star Trek Panels: This one was trickier, as most panelists tried to avoid directly referring to Trek shows or even the names of their own characters. Most failed in this, either by accident or by intention. As a worker and union member, I understand why they are striking, and I hope their union achieves their goals. As a fan, I paid a lot of money to attend this event, and I really fail to see how not discussing Trek in front of Trek fans at a Trek convention actually will impact the fat-cat CEOs (i.e. the bad guys in this) who are screwing the actors and writers. Ok, their not talking Trek was not the end of the world and certainly did not really hurt my experience at the con, but it still was irritating. Then there were some actors who did not give a shit about what the union thought, and discussed Trek to the fans like normal. Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations, anyone? Shouldn’t that apply to opinions as well as ethnic, racial, gender, etc. diversity?

One very cool thing about the panels is that when Zachery Quinto (Spock) was about two-thirds of the way through his panel, they brought out Ethan Peck (Spock) to join him. A meeting of the two Spocks! The crowd went wild! Very cool.

Zachery Quinto and Ethan Peck on stage together as Two Spocks at #STLV57

I missed the opening of William Shatner’s (Jim Kirk) panel (I was in line for a photo with the Two Spocks), but later found out that they also briefly brought out Paul Wesley (Jim Kirk and Sam Kirk), and Dan Jeannotte (Sam Kirk). Three Kirks on stage together. And I missed it!

Star Trek Cosplay: I don’t cosplay, but a lot of folks do, and the costumes on display were great. My favorites include the Mugato, though there were so many great cosplays!

The Next Generation Reunion Panel: This was a highlight for myself and a lot of fans. Unlike other panels, this one fans had to pay to attend. But, it was cool! On stage (talking Trek, but, you know, not really talking Trek), were Jonathan Frakes (Riker) (“Who’s in Charge Here?”-ok, you had to be there to get that line-very funny!), Brent Spiner, (Data/Lore, et al) Gates McFadden (Dr. Crusher), Marina Sirtis (Troi), Michael Dorn (Worf), John de Lancie (Q), Denise Crosby (Tasha/Sela), LaVar Burton (LaForge). The panel was moderated by Picard showrunner Terry Matalas.

LaVar Burton and Brent Spiner at the Next Generation Panel at #STLV57

The TNG stars discussed (by name, multiple times), their characters, and aspects of both TNG and Picard Season 3. The whole “we are on strike and cannot mention Trek by name” thing seemed to be ignored or circumvented a lot on this panel. Crosby talked about how she wished Sela’s character could complete her story arc, and Frakes mentioned Trek by name several times. As a fan paying for this panel, this was more than I expected. Oh, and Spiner is genuinely a funny guy. My only complaint is that some big names were missing from this panel: Sir Patrick Stewart (Picard), and Wil Wheaton (Wesley). It would have been great to see them both join their TNG family on stage.

Another great aspect of STLV57, was the ability of fans to interact and discuss Trek. For me, that often came as I stood in long lines for photo ops and autographs. I met fans from around the country and around the world while in line, and had some great talks about Trek and sci-fi in general.

Other: I should also mention the accommodations at the Rio. The convention site itself is great for this event. I also had the opportunity to attend the World Series of Poker (WSOP) some years ago at the Rio. This hotel/casino has a great space for these huge events. Compared to last year at Bally’s (nice hotel, but the convention space was way to small), having the event back at the Rio was great.

On social media, I see that some fans complained about their rooms at the Rio. My experience was positive, as I had a room in the Masquerade Tower, where the rooms are a bit nicer and larger than in the Rio’s other tower, the Ipanema Tower. However, while the Rio restaurants were all open this time (for STLV55, during the height of the pandemic, many were closed, the price of the food was grossly overpriced for the quality. Don’t get me wrong, the food was good, but certainly not what I would have paid for a similar meal at a hometown restaurant.

Overall, the STLV57 con was a great success, and I, for one, enjoyed it immensely. If you enjoyed this fan review, you might want to check me out on Twitter, where I riff on all things Geeky…

Oh, and before we go…I saw this on Twitter. Terry Matalas posted a picture (did he take it?) of Brent Spiner taking a picture of the Mugato in the men’s bathroom at the Rio. As George Takei might say, ‘Oh, MY!”

#STLV Why is @robertbeltran74 getting all this hate? Other stars on stage mentioned Trek and characters by name, inlucuding Armin Shimerman (named Quark), Jonathan Frakes (mentioned Trek multiple times), Denise Crosby (mentioned Tasha and Sela by name, among others. #StarTrek

— Roger Lee👉👉👉#STLV (@Darth_Trojan) August 9, 2023

Quark -Armin Shimerman-Answered My Question About the SAG-AFTRA Strike and STLV

Last night (July 13, 2023), after the announcement of the SAG-AFTRA actor’s strike, I took to Twitter to ask several Star Trek actors if the strike would affect their ability (per union strike rules) to attend the Star Trek fan convention in Las Vegas (#STLV) in August. STLV is the biggest Star Trek event for fans each year, and over a hundred Star Trek (and this year, also, The Orville), actors, showrunners, writers, etc. are scheduled to attend.

At STLV, lots of fans pay good money for autographs and photo ops with their favorite Trek actors. If union strike rules forbid attendance by actors, that would impact a lot of fans who have already doled out money for the show.

So, I went to the Elonverse (i.e. Twitter), to ask Star Trek actors if they can attend. I got two responses, and both made my day!

First, Chase Masterson (Leeta from DS9) responded:

Chase Masterson's response to the #STLV question 07.13.23 — Chase Masterson’s response to the #STLV question 07.13.23

Then, Armin Shimerman (Quark, also from DS9) responded:

In both cases, their responses are exactly what I wanted, and needed, to hear.

Thank you to Chase Masterson and Armin Shimerman for clarifying their ability to attend STLV. Note that the Star Trek Las Vegas event is put on by Creation Entertainment, and is NOT (thankfully) an officially recognized or sponsored event by ANY of the studios. That, I believe, enables the actors to attend and make their fans hearts happy!

Let us hope that our Star Trek actors and the rest of SAG-AFTRA win their battle against the Ferengi-like Studios!

Live Long and Prosper!

PS. Check out my review of Strange New Worlds S2 Episode 5

On The Passing of David Crosby, and the Continuing Death of Classic Rock

When I heard that David Crosby had passed away at the age of 81, it wasn’t a terrible surprise given his age and the fact that his health hasn’t been an issue for a while but, it made me think about the ongoing loss of many long time and important entertainers and musicians.

Just a few months ago we lost Christine McVie of Fleetwood Mac. We also recently learned about the death of Arthur Duncan who is as far away from being a rock star as you can get, but for someone who’s parents and grandparents made them watch The Lawrence Welk Show as a youth that one hit hard too. Also the recent passing of Jeff Beck, one of the Guitar Gods of the 1960s and ’70s was kind of out of left field, as was the death of Christine McVie.

On the deaths of McVie, Crosby, and Beck, as anyone who’s read this blog in the past knows, I’m a big fan of classic rock and they are all a big part of that genre. I never saw Jeff Beck live, which is now unfortunate of course, but I did have the opportunity to see Fleetwood Mac with Christine McVie live, and I also saw David Crosby play twice once with Crosby Stills and Nash (CSN) and another time with Crosby Stills Nash & Young (CSNY).

When I saw Fleetwood Mac perform in the 1990s it was in Seattle and this is during one of their periodic tiffs the band had with Lindsey Buckingham, who was not part of that touring band unfortunately, but I did get to see Christine McVie, Stevie Nicks, Mick Fleetwood, and John McVie, and a couple of fill-in guitarists who are actually pretty good, but again I’m glad I had the opportunity to see Fleetwood Mac they were an amazing live band.

The two times I saw David Crosby play live one time he was with Crosby, Stills, and Nash, and this would have been sometime in the late 80s or early 90s in the Seattle area. As I recall it was a good show and I enjoyed it but then when I saw them playing a few years later with Neil Young, as CSNY. In that show, they had a lot more energy in my mind, clearly related to the fact that Neil Young was with them. I’m a huge Neil Young fan, so I may be a little bit biased there.

But, a major take away from that is that David Crosby did have an amazing voice. As I’ve looked through several articles online talking about his life and career and the fact that he produced a lot of new music in the last few years ( I need to take a look at those more recent albums), I’m getting reminded of his influence in the history of classic rock not just with Crosby Stills Nash & Young but also with the Byrds, another great band that had a very important role in the 1960s.

All of this reminiscing about David Crosby caused my mind to spark to the Jefferson Airplane. I had actually completely forgotten that Crosby helped record and write songs with and for the Airplane, and that again connects him as a pretty important person in 1960s music, especially the San Francisco scene.

Though I mentioned Christine McVie, Jeff Beck and yes, Arthur Duncan, in this post, this is mostly about David Crosby and the big loss we have with his passing.

The recent deaths in classic rock reminds me also of a book I read a year or two ago called Twilight of the Gods, by Steven Hyden. This book affected my perception of mortality and the fragility of our connections with Classic Rock and the musicians who create the music that we love. As we move forward in time, we are starting to experience more and more casualties, usually now through natural means, among our classic rock icons. I fear that 2023 will make us mourn our musicians even more.

Check out the videos below of David Crosby performing with the Byrds, CSN, and his own Lighthouse Project.

Star Trek: A Lifelong Passion

Star Trek: The Next Generation, was the first live-action Star Trek show I watched as each episode made its initial appearance on TV. I grew up watching the original series, simply known as “Star Trek,” back then, and I also vaguely recall watching the Star Trek: Animated Show when I was a kid. I now assume I saw the episodes as they “dropped,” to use the modern parlance, but for me, as a kid growing up, the live-action Star Trek show with Kirk, Spock, McCoy, Klingons, Romulans, and phaser shoot-outs, was THE show to watch.

My old buddies from Star Trek: The Original Series

Neil Young, Joe Rogan, and the Spotify Issue

For those not familiar with Neil Young, his work, and his politics, it may look like an old man inserting himself into a political feud with a big media star and a big media company just to make himself look good. Got news for you…Neil has been commenting on social and political issues his whole career. Heck, just a quick look at his song catalog shows multiple times he has “gone political” in his lyrics. His spat with Spotify and Joe Rogan has made the news, and both sides in America’s current ideological divide are fighting over what it all means.

“Southern Man,” “Ohio,” “Rockin’ In The Free World,” “American Dream,” and many others, all poked at authority, the dominant social order, wars, racism, and other issues in American society. Neil has been doing this literally since the 1960s and the Vietnam War. While I do not really care about Joe Rogan one way or another (his viewpoints on the pandemic, from what I glean from various sources, border on the idiotic, if not malevelant), I also do not always agree with Neil Young’s political stances. That is part of the joy and advantage of being an American, in my view. You can disagree with someone and still like them. I have many friends who are either more conservative than I , or more liberal than I. Yet, while we may disagree, we are still buddies.

I take that attitude into my music and media consumption as well. I love the music of Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, John “Cougar” Mellencamp, Neil Young, and many others whose political songs and other commentary on the world I do not always agree with. The same is true on the other side of the ideological coin. I love Van Morrison, Eric Clapton, and I like a good deal of the music of Ted Nugent and Kid Rock (despite the fact that is a really stupid stage name!), again, among others. I don’t always agree with them either. The point is, I am tolerant of varying viewpoints, as long as they do not stray into “evil” territory, like out-and-out racism, or violence.

Part of this, I admit, is about selfishness. I do not want to deny myself the company of friends (and relatives) who think differently than me, nor do I want to deny myself the music I have enjoyed my entire life. But it is also more than that. My willingness to see both sides and tolerate a certain degree of ideological differences is a choice as an American who still believes in America.

To me, America is the promised land of freedom. If we take the spirit of the First Amendment to heart, (as we all should), that means that we recognize that we all have true freedom of speech, and we should all respect that (again, to a point in my opinion-racism and violence excepted). Yes, that means that Joe Rogan DOES have the right to spread disinformation and lies. And yes, Neil Young DOES have the right to call out Spotify and remove his music from that service. And I have a choice of what to do also, as does every other person. If someone wants to be stupid (see, I am expressing my right to have an opinion) and not believe in what true science and medical experts say, then that is their right as Americans. Take the horse dewormer and see if it cures your COVID infection, while I choose to get vaccinated and survive when I do catch it (I did get it, and I am clearly still alive!)

Listen to Neil Young music, or listen to the Joe Rogan podcast. That is your choice. Sign up for Spotify or cancel your subscription. That is your choice. I shake my head at the wonder of how otherwise intelligent people make stupid decisions (yes, I have made bonehead decisions in life also…that is part of life), but in all this debate and haranguing about this small battle in the war of words we now have in our nation, we need to keep in mind that we are all in the same boat, and that we are all Americans who have been raised to believe in the personal freedoms we are all born with and guaranteed in the Constitution and in the Bill of Rights and other Amendments. Our country is losing sight of that basic truth. We DO all have the freedom and liberty to make choices, but we must also recognize that the other person has the right to make choices and, yes, the right to be wrong.

Political and financial boycotts, which is what “cancel culture” is really about, have been with us forever. The idea of taking your money and walking away from a service (we see you Spotify), or from a performer (I’m guessing a lot of people on one side of the debate are now avoiding Neil’s music), that is a very American idea. And that is ok. I choose to side with Neil, because I agree with him on this issue, (plus I am a long-time fan). In full disclosure, I have never used Spotify, as I use a competing streaming service, so I am not actually changing anything I don’t already do. But this is a fascinating example of how we as a country are tearing ourselves apart instead of accepting that some people have differences. Cancel Spotify? Go ahead, it is your right. Cancel Neil Young? Go ahead, it is your right. But please people, do not cancel your ability to talk and interact with other people with respect. We all have the freedom and liberty to our own opinions. Americans have always had this right (though many Americans had to fight to actually make use of their Constitutional rights in our history), and we need to remember that the person we debate also has those rights. Remember that!

Neil Young Rocks!

Star Wars and Star Trek: That Time Ensign Kim Almost Killed Han Solo

Garrett Wang, who is best known for playing the eternally low-ranking Ensign Kim in Star Trek: Voyager, disclosed in the Delta Flyer Podcast that he creates with fellow Voyager alum Robert Duncan McNeill, that back when Voyager was in production in the 1990s, he almost ran over the legendary actor, Harrison Ford.

In recounting this near-disaster, Wang described driving through the Paramount Studios’ parking lot, he recalled speeding around a bend and Harrison Ford appeared out of nowhere, right in front of Wang’s car ‘I’m actually speeding around the parking lot, and I come around this one bend and this guy in a suit walks between two cars, right in front of my car, so I slam on my breaks,’ Wang said.

When he realized who the gentleman in the suit actually was, Wang’s first thought was “Oh my god, I almost killed Han Solo!” I would have been hated by nerds everywhere.”

Thankfully, no one was hurt in this parking lot episode, but think about this for a minute in a geeky nerdy way…had Star Trek’s Ensign Kim actually hit and harmed or killed Star Wars’ Han Solo, the eternal debate between fans of the two franchises could be decidedly more belligerent. As it is, many fans debate on social media which fictional universe is better, Star Trek or Star Wars. That debate is, and should be, ongoing and be both passionate and logical.

This reminds me of a comment made by George Takei (Hikaru Sulu from the original Enterprise) some years ago, where he said, in effect, that Star Trek and Star Wars fans should unite in a grand Star Alliance to fight the real enemy: The Twilight Franchise! I thought that was a hilarious comment, especially as, having seen the first of the Twilight movies, and going “ugh, glittering vampires?”

Regardless, it is a good thing that Ensign Kim did not run over Han Solo and Indiana Jones. The fictional movie world is a better place with Han alive. BTW, have you seen the recent Star Wars movies…?

Pandemic Quarantine Reads: Zone One

While looking for good pandemic/lockdown reads, I stumbled upon Zone One. Here are my thoughts on this book.

Several articles on books these past couple of months mentioned that sales of pandemic and virus-related books, both fiction and nonfiction are up. People are reading about past epidemics as well as fictional ones. After seeing a list of recommended pandemic fiction reads, I decided to dive into several of these plague-ridden dystopian fictional worlds. Here are my thoughts on one of these pandemic-themed books.

Zone One, by Colson Whitehead, is a zombie apocalypse novel written in 2011, is the first of those books listed in a New York Times piece on this genre.

When reading an author who is new to me, I usually do not read up on his or her background, intentionally choosing to learn about their writing style and their world view through the eyes and experiences of their characters and their stories. This habit of mine led to a bit of a surprise about half-way through this book. A bit of a disclaimer: I like zombie books.

I read the first several volumes of the graphic novel version of Walking Dead, (you DID know it was a comic book before it was a TV show, right?). A couple years ago, I read World War Z which was remade into a Brad Pitt movie with much faster zombies, but basically the same plot (yes, the movie is worth watching). So, when I decided to start my virus-inspired quarantine reads, after reading a New York Times Book Review listing of virus/pandemic related books, I thought Zone One sounded interesting.

Whitehead’s writing style took a bit getting used to. His transitions from his main character’s present-day life, to the character’s flashbacks to the past are sudden, and at first a bit confusing, but the overall quality of his writing, and the life his character led during the virus that, yes, turns people into zombies, or, as the survivors call them, “Skels”, definitely grabbed ahold of my attention by both lapels and refused to let it go.

About halfway through this book, the main character, whose real name we never learn, but who is called “Mark Spitz” throughout the book (the explanation comes about midway through), is revealed to be African-American. Now, this was a bit of a surprise, as, I assumed, with no descriptions to the contrary, Mark Spitz to be white. His nom de guerre of Mark Spitz, a famous white American Olympic swimmer from the 1970s, helped lead me to assume he was white. Well…not! At that point, I started wondering if the author was also black. Breaking my informal rule, I looked him up, and yes, he is African-American. In addition, he is not just some pulp fiction, dime-a-dozen sci-fi author, but he is a real life “literary” writer with actual, real (i.e. non-Sci-Fi) writing awards to his name. From Wikipedia, I learned that Colson Whitehead won the 2016 National Book Award for Fiction and the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. In 2002, he received a MacArthur Fellowship, which is a so-called “genius grant” only given to really serious people in various fields of work. I love sci-fi and fantasy fiction, but I will be the first to admit that most of the authors I read in those genres do not win Pulitzer Prizes for fiction!

In the words of one book review I found after finishing this novel, Zone One is part genre fiction, part literary fiction—a zombie story in the hands of an award-winning literary novelist. Whitehead has stated that the novel was partly an attempt to return to his adolescent fascination with horror writer Stephen King and science fiction icon Isaac Asimov. What drew me in, of course, was the pandemic connection and the zombie piece, but once I got used to his writing style, the social commentary that he inserts into the story is cutting and very insightful as to the state of American society as he sees it today. If this story (minus the virus-created zombies of course), is indicative of his other writings, I think I will check out his other books at some point.

The book is worth picking up in my opinion. His character creation is good, and the world he creates is compelling, but sad. He captures the humanity of the virus survivors and describes the psychological quirks that the survivors live with. This aspect shows that he creates three-dimensional characters who you can believe could be real.

By the way, just as I was finishing up writing this piece, news came out that Whitehead had one a second Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, this time for The Nickel Boys. I stumbled upon a major literary figure, and all I wanted was a book about how a virus turns people into zombies! Lucky me!