Jonah Caine, a lone survivor in a zombie-infested world, struggles to understand the apocalypse in which he lives. Unable to find a moral or sane reason for the horror that surrounds him, he is overwhelmed by violence and insignificance. After wandering for months, Jonah's lonely existence dramatically changes when he discovers a group of survivors. Living in a museum-turned-compound, they are led jointly by Jack, an ever-practical and efficient military man, and Milton, a mysterious, quizzical prophet who holds a strange power over the dead. Both leaders share Jonah's anguish over the brutality of their world, as well as his hope for its beauty. Together with others, they build a community that reestablishes an island of order and humanity surrounded by relentless ghouls.
But this newfound peace is short-lived, as Jonah and his band of refugees clash with another group of survivors who remind them that the undead are not the only-nor the most grotesque-horrors they must face.
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It has almost been a year since the Apocalypse stroke as flesh eating zombies.
Those who survived hide behind barricades, those who don't have a hiding place became killing machines, avoiding towns and the night. The incurious zombies rarely look up so a higher platform to sleep on almost seems like a piece of heaven for one night.
Jonah is one of those who came to find his family without success. Since then he adapted to survival on the street and learnt how to keep the zombies at bay.
Rescued from a dangerous situation Jonah is taken in by a larger group of survivors. Protected by a huge river and the museums gates they built up a small community with new but mostly humane rules. Their leader Milton is a "half-infected" who wasn't bitten by a zombie but by zombie rodents that were used for testing the disease.
With his bright character Milton dreams of rebuilding society within their gates where food and security can be taken for granted.
It is a long way the community has to go to archive the goal piece by piece. Jonah is an asset to the community as well as ex-military Jack, his girl-friend Sarah, ex dental-hygienist turned into doctor and Tanya as well as young "Popcorn" who don't feel fear but lots of rage.
In their quest to find more survivors Jonah, Tanya and Popcorn are taken hostage by ex-prisoners who survived in their prison by eating venison and rotten peaches. There is only one person who can rescue them out of this situation but does he value the safety of the community more than the lives of three community members ?
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Dying to Live is a bit like the common zombie book with some nice add-ons. It is intellectual not only because the author used Dante and Shakespeare but also uses them in his dialogues between Jonah and Milton.
What I liked about Dying to Live is that is was approachable and humane. Pfaffenroth looks behind what happened and looks up to the future without resting on the common goal of building up a new society with empty phrases. He asks for the why more than once and he delivers.
I read the book in one day and picked up its continuation Dying to Live: Life Sentence up directly after closing the novel.
David Wellington was right to to say Dying to Live is a thinking man's zombie novel.
Rating:
Visit Kim Pfaffenroth.
Paperback: 216 pages
Publisher: Permuted Press (April 1, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 097897073X
ISBN-13: 978-0978970734
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