Book reviews: The Walking Dead, vols 1-3

Robert Kirkman’s The Walking Dead series caught my eye when Augie De Blieck, Jr. reviewed Vol. 3, “Safety Behind Bars”. It’s a post-apocalyptic zombie series (normally: an eh reaction from me) with a great hook. That in Vol.3 our heroes think they’ve found everything they need: food, shelter, security. And they find it in the form of a maximum security prison.

That really piqued my interest. Turning my preconceptions about safety inside out. This intrigued me enough to go and read Vols. 1 & 2 as a lead-up. In the intro to volume one, Kirkman explains that the point of the story he’s telling is not to scare. That the zombies are incidental, maybe even allegorical. That the story he’s telling is a human one, about learning to really work for what you need.

He talks a good game, and that’s a dead giveaway where this review is going. Volume 1 was okay but had some far-fetched elements (yes, even for a zombie story), but I forgave because he’s setting up. Volume 2 was better and had some challenging ideas about mortality and faith. And volume 3 was gripping. And really scary. Man, black and white works for a zombie story set in a mostly abandoned prison.

The book is well done, but I didn’t love it. One, I was reading it before bed, which was my mistake. But also, it’s so bleak. It hasn’t (yet?) found its heart. I don’t think this is Kirkman’s story about the nature of humanity. He’s still in “interesting idea wrapped in popcorn entertainment” mode. In that, it’s successful. I can recommend it for George Romero and Tom Savini fans, definitely. But if you’re like me, and are looking for more sociology akin to The Stand… keep looking.