Warm Bodies

by Isaac Marion
Published: Atria, 2011
Pages: 239

R is a zombie with a problem.  He shuffles around a war ridden America, eating brains and wishing there was more to his life, memories even. On one of his many hunting trips, he encounters the memories of one of his victims.  When he makes the decision to protect his victim's girlfriend, Julie, it sparks a change in him, one that could lead him to humanity once more, that is if he can stay 'alive'.

I saw a trailer for the movie based on this book before I'd even heard of this book.  I was strangely mesmerized by it, so of course I knew that I had to read the book.  This is also my introduction into the Zombie genre, so there was a lot riding on this book.  I can firmly say now, that I will be reading many more zombie books.

The unconventional love story between a human and a zombie is enchanting and completely unpredictable.  R's inner dialogue is witty and engaging; I really enjoyed hearing the inner thoughts of a zombie.  His desire to be more human, or rather to have love, provides the catalyst for the story.  R searches for it even before he meets Julie.  It is unique and entertaining.

There are so many aspects of this book that are worth mentioning, the memories and the characters specifically.  Julie seems like any other zombie-apocalypse survivor, hardened, only she has hope.  Strangely enough, R seems to give her the hope in the future, for change, for health.

One of my favorite parts is reading about the culture of the zombies, their rituals and human-like attitudes.  Even though people see them as inhuman corpses, they ironically have very similar situations and compulsions as the living. Isaac Marion has created a story that can capture the attention and imagination of the reader from the beginning.

Stars: 4/5

Praise:

"Marion is a disarming writer, ruefully humorous, knowingly cinematic in scape. This is a slacker-zombie novel with heart."
     --The Guardian

"Warm Bodies is a terrific book - a compelling literary fantasy which is also a strange and affecting pop-culture parable."
     -- Nick Harkaway, author of The Gone-Away World

"A mesmerizing evolution of a classic contemporary myth."
     --Simon Pegg, actor in Shaun of the Dead