Warm Bodies

The Book

I will start by confessing that if there is one type of monster film I avoid it is a zombie movie. The walking dead still hold a subconscious fear over me and they continue to be the one thing that gives me nightmares.
Reading this book helped me to examine those fears and think about why zombies have developed into one of the zeitgeist monsters at this time. As our fears and beliefs in heaven and hell disappear along with religion, what is left? When our soul or life force stops, the ultimate insult that could happen would be for our bodies to carry on without that spark of consciousness that makes us human.
As well as the deeper questions, I also purely enjoyed the story itself as a radical and new twist on Romeo and Juliet. There is a plague on both their houses - a zombie plague.  "R" gradually develops an attachment for Julia, after he eats her boyfriend's brain and acquires his memories. He takes her back to his Hive at the airport and we get to see the "life" zombies lead when off camera.

These zombies have rituals and a parody of human life, however, with marriages and assigned children, which makes them more interesting than the usual shuffling groaning undead. The humour comes with these parodies and with R and Julia trying to mimic each other to pass unnoticed amongst their own kind.

The Perks of being a wallflower

The Book

The novel is told through a year's worth of letters that the first person narrator, Charlie, sends to a random stranger. This allows for thoughts and feelings to be shared to the reader, but it does make you wonder at the poor receiver of these letters - why is this person sending me letters? Who are they? I would have contacted the police!
It is a story of high-school teenage years, retreading some of the familiar plots of boy likes girl but girl has boyfriend; boy is gay and has a relationship with the jock, who doesnt want it known; girl becomes pregnant but boyfriend doesn't want to know etc etc. The first person narrator is rather wet and I felt like giving him a shake, as he is always crying - when he's happy or sad. It all comes to a head when he finally gets to be with Sam, the girl he has been moping after the whole time and when things begin to get physical, Charlie baulks.
I wanted to throw the book down then, but as there was only 20 pages to go I thought I would finish it.