Book Review: The Walking Dead by Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore

     You're reading my first review of a graphic novel! Yay! This will be the first of many because a) I want to read more graphic novels and b) sometimes I don't have time to read and review a novel every week.

     Anyway, I'm a fan of the Walking Dead TV show (despite being woefully behind this season) so I thought I should try reading the comic book series on which it's based. I picked up the first volume at the library and read it in an hour. It was so, so good. The premise of the book is that while the protagonist, a sheriff named Rick, was in a gunshot-induced coma, some kinda zombie epidemic broke out and he must now find his wife and son.
     However, the story is less about the shock value of a zombie apocalypse and more about the impact of life-threatening circumstances on human behavior and civilization. The book got me thinking about issues like private property, gun control, and women's rights. Specifically, it challenged my absolute beliefs on these issues. For example, does it make sense for people in danger of zombie attacks to carry firearms? Probably. Does it make sense for little kids to carry them? I don't know, but I like how these questions are explored over the course of this book.
   I also enjoyed some of the very tender scenes depicted by the illustrator, such as the one shown above. Judging from this image, the institution of family is likely to survive anarchy, disease, and even zombies.

     - Carly

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