Yeah! For once, I'm ahead! Now I have to catch up on the stack of books on my READING list...

Ahhhh, I skipped over your last post Michelle because I've made zero progress this week. I'm gonna try real hard to catch up!!

Okay, PART TWO...
"Deadman’s Road"-Really liked this story and the way the author writes. I’m excited to start his first Hap & Leonard book this week.

"The Skull-Faced Boy"-Good, not great. But good. I was rooting for Jack to get the girl though.

"The Age of Sorrow"-Liked the whole feminist/survivalist theme of this story. Didn’t like that it ended with her giving herself over pathetic and lonely to the zombies at the end. Where’s the strong female empowerment? It started off so well, but seems like so many female authors always pussy out at the end. (no pun here) Sorry ladies, but she should have stood her ground. You know a male character wouldn’t have fed himself through the fence to the zombies!

"Bitter Grounds"-As much as I love Neil, I only LIKED this story. I laughed at some parts, trademark Gaiman humor in this, but overall, I just didn’t love it.

"She’s Taking Her Tits To The Grave"- Despite the title, I actually really liked this story. Maybe its because I have a sister and I understand that bond. I liked the ending of this story.

"Dead Like Me"-”the ultimate dry hump”--haha! Loved the style, liked the characters, really thought this was a smart approach. Liked that the Living kicked the shit out of this guy for being a “traitor” by pretending to be a zombie. I guess you’ve gotten survive somehow. Terrifying what people could theoretically get “used” to, like the screams of people being eaten alive, or seeing child zombies attacking people. Yuck! This story scared me because it made me think of what would happen if I was the one who survived. I think I’d probably wrap it up like this guy did too. I liked the screaming of the names…gonna check this guy out more.

"Zora and the Zombie"-I was hoping for some voodoo-focused stories, and now I want to read some of Hurston’s stories. Liked the twist. Its so frustrating that there’s so many books I want to read and not enough time to enjoy them all!!

"Calcutta, Lord of Nerves"-Decent, liked that it took place in India and the Hindu religious slant. Didn't like all of the crotchety (haha) descriptions, but I would still like to visit there someday, despite it being the "pussy" of the world.

"Followed"-Loved this...it was almost sweet. I can hear you laughing now Kathryn. So, was it just me or do you think the zombie attached herself because she worked in the sweatshop that made his fancy white shirt??? That's what I came up with. REALLY liked the ending and just the totally different idea of zombies in this story, that they haunted you more than just straight up ate you -- they ate away AT you, instead. Clever, clever.

"The Song the Zombie Sang"-Meh. Coming from two of the biggest and most critically acclaimed SF writers, I just expected something more interesting. Maybe its fascinating to the right reader, like a classically trained pianist or music appreciation student. For me, not so much.

"Passion Play"-Totally weird that LAST NIGHT I came across a website describing this event. I hadn't heard of it before and then I read this story tonight. Started off kinda confusing with all of the names, not so good on Catholic hierarchy, but had a strong finish. I liked it overall.

"Almost the Last Story by Almost the Last Man"-I felt torn about this story. I see where the author was going with the style of this and I liked how he told all the different stories, different viewpoints, etc. Felt a little MEMENTO-ish, like it was backwards at first. It started to get a little old, but overall I liked it.

"How the Day Runs Down"-This started off really SLOOOOOOOOOOW for me, but it was probably one of the worst (as in damaging to my psyche) stories in the book, with the kids and all. Strong finish to the anthology.

OVERALL: I really liked this collection. I am glad that I can now say I've delved into the land of zombie fiction. I was pretty disappointed in MOST of the stories from the BIG NAME AUTHORS cuz I found them the least interesting, weakest, etc. They don't need the money THAT bad, right? One of my favorite things about anthologies is that I get introduced to some great authors I've never even heard of. Unfortunately, lots of the writers in this book don't have novels, and maybe only another story or two in random other anthologies that I probably won't hunt down. There are definitely some authors I will look for though. I'm interested in hearing what the rest of you thought of this overall, particularly since you've read other stuff with zombies. Where do I go from here?? Any recommendations?

Me too. I thought I was strange...well, maybe we all are! Nah, only a couple of people I know cheat and read the last chapters first. I don't get that.

I agree, I'll be very happy when I get to the end of this book. Haven't made much progress so far today. And I have to read everything cover to cover in order.

I'm reading cover to cover... well I thought I was! From the introduction it sounded like John Joseph Adams had a plan and path he was taking with the stories. After starting I'm not so sure he did but I'll stick with it one after another.

Besides, there's something about approaching the end of a book that thrills me :)

Haha! We are a good mix. Now I see why movies and books get such strangely mixed reviews. I like poking fun at politics, well at lots of things, to be honest. So the political story was interesting to me. Since I've seen alot of woman gets revenge on horny man things, i.e. Tales From The Crypt has tons of this!, it just didn't do it for me. Plus, anytime a strange man wants to tie a woman up in a book is the equivalent of someone checking out the basement in a horror flick...just don't do it! Death will happen. Not original enough for me. I love that the stories read quickly. This book is thick, but you know how some are just faster to get through. This will be one of those. Good thing, cuz I have a lot of reading to get done! Do you guys read in order or skip around in these books? I thought about skipping to all the authors I'd already read, but I wanted to be surprised, so I'm reading it cover to cover. Onto "The Third Dead Body"...

Ha, you didn't miss much imo :)

I'm gonna try to read some more today, catch up to you Shanon, and compare notes.

I'm not an anthology fan. I actually avoid them unless there's a story about a series I'm reading but this one looked good with all the promising authors. It's been hit and miss so far for me.

"Some Zombie Contingency Plans" HATED the writting and the story.

"Death and Suffrage" Zombies and gun control propaganda does not mix. /eye roll/

"Blossom" HA! Dude got what he deserved! This was a very short story but I enjoyed it. It's a good thing this one grabbed my attention. I said I'd give it 3 stories and if I didn't like any of them I was not reading any more.

"The Third Dead Body" Loved it

"The Dead" A dud - didn't do it for me.

"The Dead Kid" Loved this story! I'm still unsure how I feel about someone using the real Boy In The Box as a jump off point for a zombie story - I've seen TV show spins on it so I guess it's really no different. The whole scenerio of a child being killed and no one looking for him scares me so this is probably a story that will stick with me.

"Mathusian's Zombie" UP NEXT :)

Ok - I missed "This Years Class Picture" somehow. I'm going to go find out how I managed that!

Ok, I can see why you say it's a good first zombie story. And I have to get the jab in here too. I can't believe you thought your first zombie story, with dead children, was heartwarming! You are one sick puppy! Just kidding, you know I love ya!

Let's just update our first entries here, like the challenge so its easy to keep track. Then comment on other's in the new comments.

"This Year's Class Picture" -- maybe my opinion will mature, like fine wine. Haha! This was the first zombie short story I've ever read. Like I told Kathryn, I thought that, well, I don't want to give spoilers if we have bookjumpers here. I will read it in order. I thought it would have a more horrific ending than it did, let's leave it at that. Maybe I will write a gruesome zombie story myself. :)

"Some Zombie Contingency Plans"--Wow! I actually liked this one, although for me, the zombie aspect wasn't really that strong, like the author threw it in to get it into the anthology. That aspect of it could have been anything. Was it me or wasn't it just a ex-con who wanted to take advantage of someone who let him. And he made out like a bandit at THAT house. The ending, for me, was scarier than if zombies had arrived, because its one of my worst fears, waking up and finding my child is gone. Wasn't thrilled with the choppy style of the writing, but the story itself was good.

"Death and Suffrage"--Haha! I am not a fan of total gun control, but I actually laughed at the political parts of this story and thought the author did a good job of making the strategizing believeable. I liked the whole hidden childhood twist. So far, I haven't been disappointed with any of these stories.

Do I just have NO standards, ladies? Haha!

"Ghost Dance"--While I was reading the author intro, I was thinking, great an Indian zombie story. Native American stuff just really isn't my think, but this story was great! I felt like it wasn't a short story though. It felt more like an excerpt from a bigger story involving Edgar, the FBI agent. Very Harper Connelly, haha. If this was a series, I would read it.

"Blossom"--This story was my first so-so. I just wasn't surprised or wowed by it. The whole over-sexed man getting what he dished out isn't anything new. Throwing in the flower-eating didn't make it stand out to me, not enough anyway. And aren't some of those flowers poisonous?? I guess it wouldn't matter to a zombie, but she didn't know she'd be one when she told him to have all of them...

NEW STUFF
"The Third Dead Body"-Sooooo good. The scariest part to me was the woman who was about to be murdered…I don’t even want to imagine that.

"The Dead"-Ehh…sex with zombies. Not THAT interesting to me. I liked the style and the “twist” at the end, but it wasn’t a surprise, so I guess it wasn’t really a twist??

"The Dead Kid"-MY FAVORITE!! I actually teared up at this one. So sad, and beautiful. Growing up, losing your innocence, etc. all centered around a zombie story. I felt sick, I felt sad and then at the end I felt a little peace. Will DEFINITELY be looking into this author’s other work.

"Malthusian’s Zombie"-Smart and slick. This felt like an episode of THE TWILIGHT ZONE to me and I love that show!

"Beautiful Stuff"-So-so. You gotta feel sorry for some of these stories. The order and placement hurts some of them. Hard to follow the previous two. I liked the idea, and I even liked her writing and style, I just wasn’t too engrossed in the way it played out, I guess.

"Sex, Death and Starshine"-Blah! Maybe men would like this story more, blowjob, sex, blowjob, sex…I want to read about ZOMBIES! Haha…I’ve been disappointed with the big names in this anthology so far. All of the stories I’ve liked have been from lesser known writers. Maybe they try harder…not really inspired to read any of the dozen or so Barker books on my shelf now…

"Stockholm Syndrome"-I liked this story. Thought it was an interesting way for a father to grieve the loss of a child in a zombie format. I must be evil too, cuz I liked the ending, even with the killings. Gotta be SOME killings in this type of tale, right?
Bobby Conroy Comes Back From The Dead-LOVE Joe Hill! This story is one I’ve read before and not a typical zombie tale, more of a tribute to zombie films. The only part I didn’t like was the husband getting dropped just for being too late to the scene. Poor guy!

"Those Who Seek Forgiveness"-I’ve been avoiding her other fiction, because I don’t like to get sucked into a “trendy” series, like vampires. (Sookie keeps me busy enough!) But I enjoyed her writing and this story felt more like an excerpt than a short, so I will probably try to read some of one of her series and see where it takes me. I found it pretty dark and I liked the resurrection aspect.

"In Beauty, Like The Night"-This story was okay, I was into it more at first, but it just didn’t keep me intrigued for long. The plane crash could have made the story more exciting. I felt like the author highlighted the wrong aspects, characters, etc.
Prairie-Like THE ROAD mixed with THE GOOD, THE BAD and THE UGLY and some zombie sex thrown in. Not bad, Nicholas, not bad.

"Everything Is Better With Zombies"-This story wasn’t bad, but it felt like my friend wrote it in our high school English class. Seemed amateurish, but kept me reading, so there you go.

"Home Delivery"-Never going to hate anything by the Great Stephen King. I DID like his son’s story better though…hehe.

"Less Than Zombie"- Hated it! Don’t even want to talk about why, just hated it.

"Sparks Fly Upward"-Interesting premise, reminded me of THE VILLAGE. HATED HATED HATED the exploitation of a woman’s emotional turmoil regarding having to give up or losing a child. Seems like a cheap shot for a story. Of course, its going to be horrifying. With or without zombies. I did like her getting rid of the protestors so the next victim, err…woman, didn’t have to face them. But I wish she had taken out the village leader who made her do it in the first place.

"Meathouse Man"-Good premise, but it felt long and winded to me, and that’s not good for a SHORT story! Haha…

GONNA NEED TO POST A PART TWO...

I decided to start a thread for this book, The Living Dead, since I'm not the only one reading it. Michelle and Shanon are also counting it as part of the group reading challenge.

I know that Shanon and I did not like the first story but you did Michelle, so I guess we can start from there!

I'm mostly looking forward to familiar authors even though I know an anthology is supposed to introduce readers to new authors.

So, this is my progress so far...

"This Year's Class Picture", boring.
"Some Zombie Contingency Plans", well written, still boring.
"Death and Suffrage", really, really did not like this story.
"Ghost Dance", loved it!
"Blossom", loved it!
"The Third Dead Body", loved it!