Where's the Zombie? by Paul Moran and Jen Wainright
| Where's the Zombie? by Paul Moran and Jen Wainright | |
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| Category: Confident Readers | |
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Reviewer: Margaret Young
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| Summary: A bit like Where's Wally ..... if Wally and his mates were dead. A frightfully funny look at a zombie apocalypse. | |
| Buy? Yes | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 48 | Date: September 2013 |
| Publisher: Michael O'Mara | |
| ISBN: 978-1843179436 | |
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Where's the Zombie is basically a hidden pictures game, but unlike most books of this type, there is some storyline to it as well albeit a very limited one. It all begins when scientist Joel Peters is accidentally exposed to a new virus he was helping to create ZX-5. He is then quarantined with his whole family, right down to the dog and cat. Naturally they are all infected, and isn't long before they escape. The future of mankind is in your hands as this family must be located to learn more about how this disease operates. Your job is to search every page, find each and every family member as well as the medical kit to treat the infected. Your task will get more difficult as the infection spreads and more and more of the bystanders have become zombies as well.
Each double page spread has a small headline, keeping the reader abreast of the spread of the disease and the scenes become more chaotic as the story progresses. Apart from the first two pages, this is the only real text in the book. The illustrations all show huge crowds, so spotting the entire family is never easy. I believe this was intended for older children, and quite possibly adults as well, so the difficulty level is fairly high. In addition, there is an extra bonus list of items to find next to the answer key at the back of the book and it would be easy to add an unlimited number of extra items for each other to find if you read this as a family like we do. Our favourite added activity is to hunt for the funniest thing on each page, like a yellow suited hazmat worker kicking a zombie in the backside on the hospital scene. I have spent over an hour on this with my sons, and my oldest has spent hours more on his own, but there is still plenty left to find.
We absolutely loved this book, but it won't be for every child. There is a parental advisory notice posted on the front due to gruesome scenes. This is meant to depict a zombie apocalypse and there is plenty of death, dismemberment, bloodshed and burning. If you child is prone to nightmares, the utter hopelessness of the human position may be disturbing as well. This book is only for children who view zombies as funny, fictional characters. For any child who still thinks there may be monsters under the bed - this is most definitely not appropriate.
My youngest son (age 5) says his favourite part was the zombie getting kicked in the butt and the group of young men showing their underwear. I found the scene where a herd of cattle have been infected and are running about eating humans the most amusing. My oldest son, age 8, chose the whole book rather than a favourite scene. He said what he likes best is that the pictures are of something he really likes. He finds it much more entertaining to search through pictures of the undead than people on holiday. Sorry Wally, you've just been demoted.
If this book appeals then you might also enjoy:
Where's the Meerkat? Journey Through Time by Paul Moran
Generation Dead by Daniel Waters
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You can read more book reviews or buy Where's the Zombie? by Paul Moran and Jen Wainright at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
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