Zombie Mondays: The Zombie Autopsies: Secret Notebooks from the Apocalypse by Steven C. Schlozman

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing (March 21, 2012)
• ISBN-10: 0446564656
• Source: Personal Copy

Two-thirds of humankind have been infected with ataxic neurodegenerative satiety deficiency syndrome (ANSD), the virus that causes individuals to lose all evidence of humanity, lurch when they walk, and crave human flesh. Dr. Stanley Blum is a neurodevelopmental biologist, researcher and zombie expert for the CDC (Centers for Disease Control). Infected with the virus himself, he volunteers to travel to an island controlled by the United Nations, Bassas da India, to autopsy “living” zombies in an attempt to isolate the pathogen causing the virus. The Zombie Autopsies, in a journal format, is Blum’s detailed studies of the cause of ANSD, including the symptoms, rate of growth, etc. His entries are supplemented with clinical drawings by another doctor infected with this horrible virus:

Rather than fill the novel with yet another zombie attack storyline, Schlozman instead provides a detailed, scientific examination of the zombie virus. Since the doctors performing these living autopsies are uncertain as to who will discover the journals after they have died,  while they are written with great scientific detail they can be understood by the average reader. The terrifying thing is that the author describes such a well-researched explanation of the cause of this virus that readers will become convinced that such an attack is possible. Kudos to Schlozman, a doctor himself, for granting zombie enthusiasts yet another unique book to add to their collection. Anyone who calls themselves a die-hard zombie enthusiast can’t afford to pass this one up! Highly recommended.

Note: many of the drawings are pretty graphic. The one pictured above is actually the tamest of them all. While the text itself is not overly gory, the drawings may not be suited for all audiences.