REVIEW: "ZombieStop Parade" by ZombieStopperUno

If you're looking for a book about the undead, "eat-your-brains" type of zombies, you'll need to keep looking. This book is all about the call to stop being a zombie, and to start thinking for yourself. Written in journal format by the unnamed narrator, "ZombieStop Parade," by ZombieStopperUno, is the story of two young men, and the evolution of their website, "ZombieStop." This website was created based on ideas developed early in their friendship, with the goal of helping other young people break free from the zombie-like thinking that characterizes the mentality of the general population. It's an awakening of sorts, for anyone who cares to listen.

There are several layers to this story. On the surface, we have the meat of the story, which involves looking with a more critical eye at the corporations and detaching from the zombie mentality that just accepts and never questions. This is also the story of a pair of friends, the evolution of their partnership, and the inequity of power between them. Then there is the "witch hunt," led by the FBI, to find the truth behind the face of this website. The FBI believes the truth to be much more violent and destructive than the partnership claims.  Underneath all that, and of far more interest to me personally, is the narrator's journey to discover for himself what he believes, and at the same time, figure out exactly what he doesn't believe. Following his journal entries seems to highlight his struggle to break away from his own "zombie-like" mentality towards his best friend as he learns to become his own man.

Corky, the brains behind this operation, guides the direction and mission of the ZombieStop website, pulling his best friend, the narrator, along for the ride. The narrator offers little bits of advice here and there, but his influence is weak, and he mostly follows his trusted friend's lead. Along the way, the narrator finds himself becoming seduced by the media and some of the mythology ZombieStop fights against, including the fame that comes with being the face of ZombieStop. Even as he questions his own place in the partnership, his relationship with his critical girlfriend, and how he wants to portray himself to the FBI agent assigned to monitor the actions of ZombieStop, he is finding himself. With clever nicknames assigned to the various antagonists (can you recognize any?), and flashes of eloquent insight from the narrator, the journey through this book is a fun and enlightening one.

At the end, you find yourself wondering about the next step. What is the next step for Corky? The next step for the narrator? Most of all, you may just find yourself wondering what will be the next step.... for you. No longer blinded to the ever-present mythology, you just may find yourself thinking a little differently about your world.

4 /5 stars