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Jan 03, 2011

Mae rated it:

I started out kind of liking this book and gradually began to realize I hated it, so much so that I actually gave up on it when I was more than half way through. I love a snarky arrogant narrator as much as the next guy, I'm a sucker for pop culture references, and I'm even an English Lit enthusiast. But each line was packed so tightly with little remarks and puns and the type of self-deprecating humor that seems to be preempting the joke rather than joining in on it that I just started to fee More...

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Jan 06, 2012

Justin rated it:

I didn't hate this book -- which is why it got three stars -- but it was hard to enjoy. The narrator admits that he was an ass in his pre-zombie lifetime, but since his mind stuck around, he's STILL an ass as he's narrating this "zombie family" journey.

Throughout the book, he drops pop culture references so frequently that it starts to get annoying. Almost every story he tells about his life-before-death shows him being classist, sexist, and even a little bit racist during hi More...

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Jul 12, 2011

Ariel rated it:

Brilliantly written, this book tells the story of an English professor that has been turned into a zombie during a world zombie apocalypse. However, when he turns into a zombie, Jack Barnes remains somewhat human because of his 2 traits--cognition and the ability to read/write. Other zombies are, well, zombie-like, with no cognition and only being able to sense human flesh so that it can devour the victim's brains and other body parts. But as Barnes strives to survive as a zombie, he finds that More...

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Apr 07, 2011

Lisa rated it:

Wow. That was truly an enjoyable read! I spoke with a young lady who works at the library and she had recommended a zombie book amongst a display of other books recommended by staff. I asked if I could check the book out, since it had a marker on it, and I happen to have asked the person who made the recommendation. She is a zombie book fan, which is great news for me. She had the latest scoop on other zombie novels to read.

Anywho, the narrative is entertaining, the zombie family is More...

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Mar 09, 2011

Monster rated it:

Brains is billed as an intellectual zombie novel. It's about college professor Jack Barnes, who becomes a zombie during the zombie apocalypse, but retains his mind and ability to write. He finds other zombies who have retained their minds, and various other skills, and sets out to find his place in the world.

Brains is quite literate and well-written. Unfortunately, the main character is a complete pompous jerk who spends the entire book prattling on in academic and pop culture referen More...

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Feb 17, 2011

Lily rated it:

I went to Borders this weekend and decided that to celebrate it being exam week I would pick up a little book to give a go because honestly, as of late I've read almost nothing for fun. The book I chose was a trendy little tome known as Brains: A Zombie Memoir by Robin Becker (who is yes, a female though I can't see the writing style as anything but male. I'll have to ponder why that is later). As of late in the literary world it's been popular to write monster influenced satire. More...

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Feb 01, 2011

Lewis rated it:

The book seems to be a method of the author massaging their own ego. Every page is crammed with references to other far greater literary works. In the space of the first few pages we are bombarded with references to Dante's Inferno, King Kong, Promethus, Romero's great works and a simile or metaphor after every verb.

Quite frankly it makes the story's intentions unclear, whether it is going for Shaun of the Dead humour, an analysis of all things zombie or a hard hitting story, with More...

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Dec 31, 2010

BookMarc rated it:

When I first laid eyes on this book I actually thought it was an ARC due to the layout and design. Perhaps not so much the front, which looks fresh and crisp, but the back of the book just had that ARC feel about it as if it would get rearranged at some future point. Oh, and the stare of the authors eyes on the back cover had me freaked out. That's not to say Robin Becker freaked me out, as I think she's an attractive woman and I wouldn't kick her out of bed for farting, but there was just somet More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Oct 25, 2010

Brendan rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Sep 04, 2010

Debra rated it:

When “Brains” begins, the zombie apocalypse is already underway. It even reaches the door of Jack Barnes, literally, and so when he’s bitten by a zombified neighbor who crashes through the living room window (Barnes is distracted while bickering with his wife), the transformation begins. An English professor at a small college in rural Missouri, Barnes fares better than his mindless cohorts in that he remains sentient, and so he begins to focus on the two goals in his life: find others like More...

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Aug 14, 2010

Lisa rated it:

A friend of mine just reviewed "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies." This summer I was curious about the zombie genre, and I happened to start with "Brains: A Zombie Memoir" by Robin Becker. Well, it's hard to say this fits neatly into the zombie genre-- it's the zombie apocalypse, and it's memoir, and it's an author's first novel, and a quest, and it's my favorite genre of all, fiction about college professors. (not that you'd know it's my favorite from the reviews I've poste More...

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Jul 21, 2010

Dlmoore83 rated it:

Brains was a refreshing experience for Zombie fiction and it was the best kind of gift from a friend. I got a call saying "I have something for you, I think you'll love it. It would probably make me throw up." This friend, knows me very well. It was the best kind of gift because it was for no reason other than she saw it, thought of me and got it. That alone would've made me love it, but fortunately, I can also love it because it's well-written (yes, you CAN say that about a Zombie More...

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Jun 20, 2010

Monk rated it:

America is the land of promise. Life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness. Man is free to find destiny within the borders of this land and to make a path in the world.

But, what happens when you're dead? More importantly, what happens when you're dead, mobile after a fashion... and insatiably hungry?

Brains: A Zombie Memoir poses just such a question vis it's protagonist, Jack Barnes, a former university professor who finds himself undead after an viral outbreak turns the ent More...

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Apr 07, 2010

Jessica rated it:

Brains: A Zombie Memoir is the testament of Jack Barnes, Contemporary American Literature professor-turned-zombie. Professor Barnes is bitten during the outbreak of a virus that creates zombies, and learns upon waking to his unlife that he is not mindless like his fellow undead. Indeed, he has retained the ability to write, though he can not speak.

Jack decides he must meet and speak with the creator of the zombie virus, Howard Stein, to show that not all zombies are simpletons who li More...

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Mar 22, 2010

Melissa rated it:

Having a fascination with unique, humorous zombies (Shaun of the Dead), I was pleased when I recently had the opportunity to read an advanced copy of Brains: A Zombie Memoir by Robin Becker.

Brains is an autobiographical accounting of the “undeath” of Professor Jack Barnes, who is bitten by a zombie during the outbreak of an unusual man-made virus. When Jack comes back to himself after his death, he realizes that he still possesses one of the talents he had when he was alive: Zombie J More...

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Jun 11, 2011

Janette rated it:

There are very few books that I do not finish once I start, but this would have been the exception. I wanted to stop reading so many times and only the knowledge that I am 10 books behind on my reading challenge kept me going. So, much like the hero in the story, I put my arms out and said "moooaaahhh" and kept going, checking the page number every couple of pages to ensure I was making progress.

I enjoy books with pop culture reference and sarcasm sprinkled in, but someon More...

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Aug 22, 2010

Kevin rated it:

I picked up Brains: A Zombie Memoir, by Robin Becker because I wanted something light and funny to read. I figured it would be something along the lines of Shaun Of The Dead, and it was. I liked that it was told from the point of view of a zombie, rather than a survivor. Although, in this case, a select few zombies are seen as the survivors. The main cast of zombies each have a special "power" that they retained from life - the ability to write, run, speak, or "heal".
More...

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Mar 14, 2010

Rex Robot Reviews rated it:

Brains: A Zombie Memoir by Robin Becker was brilliant, to say the least. It was edgy, refreshing and totally unlike anything I have read lately. It was a quick read, at only 192 pages. I only wish it would have been longer- but the author was clever leaving it as she did. I don't know if I will get to visit the courageous and cunning Jack Barnes again- though I would be the first one in line to buy a second book if there ever was one.

A scientist, Stein, has been trying to mold the pe More...

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Mar 15, 2010

Wicked Lil Pixie (Natasha) rated it:

Brains: A Zombie Memoir is a hilarious look at what happens when a scientist Mr. Stein (ha) tries to create the perfect person and of course everything goes to hell aka zombies are created. The zombies take over the entire USA, infecting or eating all humans in their paths.

Most of the zombies are slobbering morons, but not Professor Jack Barnes. Sadly Jack cannot speak, but his brains are still functioning enough for him to write a memoir of his experience. Jack had been locked up hi More...

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Aug 17, 2011

Ruby rated it:

You know that friend of yours who is undoubtedly intelligent and well-read, probably still a virgin, and definitely not as witty as he thinks he is? Well, meet your narrator for the next 182 pages. The book you are about to read is crammed full of pseudo-intellectual puns that were certainly funnier INside the author's head, as well as being jam-packed with every pop culture and literary reference that even vaguely relates to the topic at hand.

I can understand how this happens to a fi More...

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Jan 11, 2011

Pickfordm rated it:

This was a fun read and it held my interest far longer than I ever expected, for a zombie story. That's because it's not your traditional horror book; instead, it examines -- with humor and an awful lot of zombie gore (a bit too much gore for my taste, but probably this would appeal to fans of the genre) -- the existential challenges to being a sentient zombie. As it turns out, it isn't all that different from the challenges we face as human beings. Thus the book manages to transcend the genr More...

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Apr 24, 2011

Tracy rated it:

The thinking man's zombie novel. Yes, I said that. A college professor gets attacked by zombies but after his change to the undead he realizes that he can still think and write. He sets out on a quest to find other "smart" zombies to join up with him on a trek to locate the doctor who created the zombie virus to see if there is a cure.

What I liked: Um, hello. It's a zombie novel so I liked just about everything. What I really liked: even though the professor can still think More...

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Mar 21, 2010

Kate (I Just Wanna Sit Here and Read!) rated it:

Since I have never read a zombie-centric book in my life, I decided to broaden my horizons when an opportunity to review one came up. And I think I have found yet another genre that I highly enjoy!

After reading and laughing (out loud may I add!) my way through the first chapter I had to keep going to see what antics Jack would get involved in with his search for his creator. This book was exceptionally clever and entertaining until the last page. I was infatuated with the idea that h More...

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Sep 19, 2010

Kathy rated it:

Interesting, gross, funny and thoughtful read. A zombie virus has been released. If you get it, you turn into a zombie of the type we see in George Romero movies who sluggishly move and mindlessly seek out brains to eat. Humans are getting wiped out right and left because most of them are becoming zombie food.

A few zombies, however, still retain cognitive skills but with a zombie bent. Yes, they really, really, really want to eat brains but they're smart enough to go about it wit More...

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Apr 20, 2011

Arthur rated it:

Zombies and that culture of things as taking over mankind that will run over everything in their chosen paths is worth every penny. My best guess is reading this novel of survival. Jack Barnes aka Captain is sophisticated, a zombie and who takes great pains in his pleasure of eating brains. Likewise in all zombie stories Barnes was first an unsuspecting victim in the virus holocaust of the living dead. Barnes parallels for us an unexpected tale with plentiful insight of what life is like after d More...

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Jan 22, 2012

Catherine rated it:

Brains is a fast, enjoyable and interesting read from the point of view of a zombie during a zombie apocalypse situation. In this novel, zombies mostly have the upper hand with sheer numbers while society has fallen apart. Lots of references to pop culture. Everything is referenced from Shakespeare to zombie films to philosophy and everything in between.

Zombies are used to highlight the wrongs in our society. Before he was a zombie, Jack Barnes was a pretty terrible person. He was More...

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Aug 28, 2011

Beth rated it:

Ugh, what a revolting book. I don't even mean in terms of the gore (of which there is plenty, and which I didn't actually mind); the main character is so frustrating, shallow, and arrogant beyond belief that I gave up after five chapters. He isn't unsympathetic because, as he's so fond of pointing out, he is a monster and we are human; he's unsympathetic because he's a jerkish caricature of an academic, the kind of person so convinced of his own smarts that you regret ever engaging in conversati More...

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Jun 23, 2010

Jennie rated it:

I don't really know what I was expecting when I picked up this book. I read the prologue, thought it sounded kind of fun, I was looking for a little diversion from the "serious" stuff I've been reading.

I got the diversion, but I absolutely hated this book. I hated the vulgarity, hated the characters, hated the storyline (and the dog-eating), hate hate hate. I didn't expect to have such a strong reaction, but I completely loathed it. So much so that it became only the More...

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Jun 22, 2011

D. rated it:

Very cute and witty! Lots of pop culture references and social commentary as if Chuck Klosterman had written a zombie novel. Follow a college professor in what seems like a very mundane life on a very dynamic adventure into the world of a zombie whose brains continue to operate on some level and consciousness remains. Gathering a misfit group of zombies together, a sharpshooter, a zombie than can talk, a nurse, a baby zombie and sprinter, our hero ventures forth into a world gone insane, avoi More...

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Aug 17, 2010

Jeff rated it:

I found this to be a fresh take on your typical zombie apocalypse novel. Instead of following a typical band of survivors or one lone survivor, we follow a sentient zombie as he picks up other zombies who are also not just brain-dead brain-eating machines and seeks to gain acceptance and be left alone. It is nice to see the "other side" of the traditional narrative. I liked the inventive ideas and descriptions of the triage and first aid performed by the nurse to keep her companions More...

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