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Lake Woebegotten #1

The Zombies of Lake Woebegotten

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The town of Lake Woebegotten, Minnesota, is a small town, filled with ordinary (yet above average) people, leading ordinary lives. Ordinary, that is, until the dead start coming back to life, with the intent to feast upon the living. Now this small town of above average citizens must overcome their petty rivalries and hidden secrets, in order to survive the onslaught of the dead.

293 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2010

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Harrison Geillor

3 books14 followers

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5 stars
125 (23%)
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203 (37%)
3 stars
149 (27%)
2 stars
35 (6%)
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24 (4%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 103 reviews
Profile Image for Melki.
7,299 reviews2,617 followers
October 18, 2019
It's been a quiet week in Lake Wobegone Woebegotten....NOT!
What with all the screaming and the . . . chewing . . .


The colorful characters of the small town of Lake Woebegotten are fairly quiet folk. They go to church, drink coffee, commit adultery, and occasionally murder one another. But now the dead are coming back to life, and they've discovered that Powdermilk Biscuits the living . . . why, Heavens, they're tasty and expeditious!

Will these Lutherans lay down the law (and the lutefisk) when flesh-eating zombies come to call?

Okay, then! Even without any knowledge of the popular radio show which this book parodies, you should be able to enjoy it as a pretty darned good zombie novel. This one is played mostly for laughs, which means no prolonged, gross-out eating scenes. One unusual thing in this book - dead animals come back to life! This makes for some fun for the local ice fishermen when the catch of the day starts biting back. And, HOLY CRAP - ZOMBEARS!!!

For me, the best thing about zombie fiction is not the gut-gnawing action, but the interaction between those trying to survive, and this book has INTERACTION out the wazoo! In addition to all the usual struggles to see who will lead and who will follow, there was a fascinating conversation between a priest, a minister and a murderer who walk into a bar about Heaven, Hell and who gets to go where.

Still not convinced?

How about a Christmas pageant with an "unusually carnivorous" baby Jesus?

For a fun read, plan a visit to Lake Wobegone Woebegotten - Where the women are strong, the men are good-looking starting to decay a bit, and all the children are above average trying to gnaw on your leg.
Profile Image for Tom Quinn.
657 reviews245 followers
December 17, 2021
A fun parody that more or less nails the essence of Garrison Keiller's classic A Prairie Home Companion series while offering far more substance than the silly premise demands.

3 stars. I should've sprung for the audiobook.
Profile Image for Alfred Haplo.
288 reviews55 followers
October 24, 2021
Small town, quite badass. The Zombies of Lake Woebegotten is my first laugh out loud zombie story. Campy, darkly humorous, with valiant attempts for creative narratives, it is enjoyable filler reading of the walking-dead-eat-people variety (bear...with it). When a meteorite crashed on earth, the dead woke up all gnashing teeth and frenzied hunger for flesh. The ever pragmatic citizens of this tiny MN town with their little secrets showed ‘em who had the bigger bite (perhaps with one... exception at the diner).
Profile Image for Julie  Capell.
1,220 reviews34 followers
November 15, 2012
Anyone who is a fan of Garrison Keillor will get a huge kick out of this book. Unlike other recent parodies (Pride and Prejudice and Zombies springs to mind) this novel is more than a one-trick pony. In fact, the zombie part of the book is pretty straight on. Maybe it’s because I am from the Midwest, but the characters in this book felt extremely real to me and the way they dealt with the zombie apocalypse seemed more realistic than in many other zombie/post apocalyptic novels I have read (and I have read quite a few). So the zombies are not the joke, it is the setting that is endlessly—and lovingly—lampooned.

It is evident that the author admires Keillor’s Lake Wobegon stories; only someone who appreciates the sly wit and self-awareness of those yarns could have written such a spot-on imitation. The people of this tiny town in the middle of Minnesota react to the rise of the undead with a laconic “Well, that sure is somethin’ ya don’t see everyday” attitude that made me laugh out loud. Short asides examining everything from the nature of winter (“it wasn’t as cold as the first time he went fishing with his father as a boy, the coldest winter on record hereabouts, when your ears would pretty much just turn to ice and snap right off”) to how to make hot dish could have been taken from any of Keillor’s stream-of consciousness Lake Wobegon radio stories. The characters, too, exhibited Keillor touches, like the kid who had taken a college course in zombie literature and kept trying to analyze the zombie mayhem around him (“"It seems to me we're dealing with the classic George Romero Night of the Living Dead sort of zombies”) and the Norwegian bachelor farmers. And like the object of his parody, the author understands that beneath the perfect façade of a perfect small town, there lurk enough nutcases to fill several novels.

Many times, I caught myself wondering if Keillor actually did write this book, that’s how good it was. I must add that I listened to this book in its Brilliance Audio version, narrated by Phil Gigante. This actor does a really fantastic imitation of Garrison Keillor that added even more to my enjoyment of the piece. He does many different voices, too, so that each character really comes alive. I will definitely be listening to it again, on the next road trip my husband and I take to Minnesota.
Profile Image for Karissa.
4,313 reviews214 followers
March 18, 2011
I got a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Being a native Minnesotan and fan of zombie books this book definitely caught my attention. It was a well done book and very entertaining.

When the town drunk finds that his dead fish are trying to bite him he suspects funny business. Soon news starts rolling in from the Twin Cities that the meteor shower last night caused everything dead to rise up (humans, animals, etc)...and once things rise they are very hungry. The town of Woebegotten has a couple of things going for it; it's really fricking cold and the population is fairly low so they should be at low risk. Unfortunately the town has be harboring a serial killer and the dead bodies of his victims come out to play, not to mentioned what happens when a dead grizzly strolls into town. Between your normal small-town shenanigans and all the crazy residents, Lake Woebegotten will have a heck of a time getting things back under control.

This was a well done book. There are a lot of plot points going on all at once, the characters are interesting, and the book is well-written and engaging. It's obviously a parody of Garrison Keillor's Lake Wobegon Days, for those who aren't familiar. This is definitely a read for adults only, there is a lot of kinky stuff going on under the surface of Lake Woebegotten, and of course a serial killer and some zombies (both human and animal).

It is very amusing and very funny at points. For example at one point there is a discussion of whether or not bugs come back from the dead (a moot point in MN in the winter) and what will happen in the summer when the mosquitos come out.... It was fun to read about something set in my home state. Northern MN is fairly accurately depicted and the description of the eyeball freezing cold accurate. So those of you warm climate people reading this, no the cold and the things it makes happen are not exaggerations!

The characters have a lot of depth and are very amusing. You have an old man who is a serial killer, a wife who wants to murder her husband for his...ah..very physical affection for his car, and a African-American deputy whose trying to hold the town together. Oh, and don't forget the town dominatrix, the bible thumping priest, and the conspiracy nut. They all come together in a sort of dysfunctional family. The writing style was very readable and reminds a bit of Christopher Moore. The story is nicely wrapped up too, which I always enjoy.

Overall I enjoyed it and am glad that I read it. A good read for fans of parodys or zombie humor. A somewhat similar book in tone is Night of the Living Trekkies, for you zombie humor fans out there.
Profile Image for Cathy.
2,015 reviews51 followers
February 4, 2012
This was a pleasant surprise. The reviews were good, but I'm not a big zombie fan at all, and despite the reviews I was still expecting another Pride and Prejudice and Zombies or other silly kind of parody. But this one was very clever and witty without being silly, a fine line to walk. The small town characters started out charming and likable, but almost all soon revealed hidden depths, with secrets and schemes to rival any big city slickers. The zombies added a level of horror that balanced out the humor and wit perfectly somehow. But what really made the book unique and not just another parody was the second section, titled, "Scenes from the winter, in no particular order, certainly not chronological." It was a risk to have these scenes unfolding out of order like this but it totally worked, it was really clever. It made it really fun, almost like a little mystery to read and figure our what happened before or next, it was a neat trick that turned what otherwise could have been pretty straightforward scenes into something really memorable. 

Overall it was just a clever book. I don't usually like to make comparisons, but I do think that fans of Christopher Moore would like it, it has that irreverent sensibility. It's also quite a bit like A. Lee Martinez's Gil's All Fright Diner, if you want to try something else with a similar style (although this was a little bit better). 
Profile Image for Linda Isakson.
431 reviews23 followers
December 17, 2010
An absolutely hysterical tongue-in-cheek piece by Keillor, the host of NPRs "A Prairie Home Companion". His description of the Minnesotan reaction to a zombie uprising simply should not be missed. His dead pan, satirical humor are the perfect recipe for creating a zombie story that's more real-life than horror. A meteorite strikes earth one day and all mammals (as far as anyone can tell) that were once dead now rise from their graves. Well, any mammal that still has any semblance of brain matter, whether rotted or fresh, that is. In the quiet town of Lake Woebegotten, the zombie uprising hasn't had quite the effect as it has on major cities, but that doesn't stop the plethora of deaths, revelations and unusual situations from occurring. I couldn't stop laughing with this smart, well-written and fun story. The characters are perfect, the setting impeccable and the zombies to-die-for. Fans of dry wit and intelligent humor will love this!
346 reviews3 followers
June 5, 2013
Mr. Geillor or Keillor, depending on the mood you are in, is one of the greatest story tellers ever. In general this book is very funny and made me smile a lot. There were a few parts that dragged here and there, but that's the nature of Lake Woebeggoten.

The dead decided to come back to life and munch on the living after a meteorological event causes some oddness in the atmosphere. People in the mortuary decided they weren't so keen on sleeping anymore and decided to chow down on the living. A bus load of tourists crashes and unleashes the zombie hoards on the town. Once that starts there is no stopping it.

What I love about the story is that the Minnesotans and Norwegian descendants still act the same as if nothing really changed. Eileen Munson decides to kill her husband, because he's really boring her. He is the mayor and through an election, she becomes the mayor. She is more worried about keeping her power than keeping away the zombies.

The Catholic priest and Lutheran minister decide to join forces and form a Zombie Hunting group. They enlist, unwillingly, Mr. Levitt, who apparently has been a serial killer all these years. Even though the townsfolk usually know everything that happens in town, they leave people alone for their unique pleasures. As the zombies, including some zombie animals, start turning the leaving into the undead, there are fewer and fewer town officials left. When Stevie Ray becomes the police chief I kept thinking about Carl the police officer in Jumanji. He's totally outgunned, but somehow manages to do all right.

The ending is pretty funny as the bad guys get their comeuppance, but the last scene leaves us with a little bit of concern for our heroes.

Profile Image for Cheryl.
418 reviews2 followers
October 8, 2014
I stumbled across this in the paperback section of the library. It's a fun idea in the vein of the P&P&Z mash-up genre--what if zombies shambled into the cozy world of Lake Wobegon, and Garrison Keillor obviously enjoyed upending the fictional world he has created and repopulating it with doppelgänger characters and finding a way to include himself. In the end, a lot of beloved (and not so beloved) townspeople get offed by the zombies and each other and a new world order is established. The writing is lively and the plotting is clever, and few survive till the end of the book, as one might expect from an apocalyptic work. Keillor's (or should I say Geillor's) understanding of the roles of religion and morality in ordinary lives adds (dare I say) depth to the standard zombie mayhem. Is Catholicism, Lutheranism or neo-Viking paganism more robust in an age of terror? You have to read it to find out.
Profile Image for Dchavez06.
58 reviews2 followers
March 15, 2011
I was surprised at how good this book was, based off of the ridiculous title and cover art. It's straightforward zombie yarn. It repeats many of the common elements, with gory details and headshots galore. But it does so shamelessly and lightheartedly, and it's enjoyable despite being unoriginal. The wide ensemble cast are all more than skin deep, if not exactly in depth or memorable characters. My personal favorite was the addition of a serial killer to the story, one of the most complex and interesting figures who made for a variety of interesting scenes.

Above all, it's funny! I know that comedy is hard to write successfully, and from the first page on I found myself steadily amused. Definitely a work that shows the author's love of both the zombie genre and the small town Wisconsin setting. Check it out at a library -- it's a good read.
Profile Image for Susan.
1,010 reviews
November 3, 2010
A co-worker handed me this, knowing my love of Lake Woebegone and having seen me considering "Zombies verses Unicorns". I flipped through it and was almost immediately snared by the line "Nobody had much of an appetite for the lemon bars and chocolate squares after Eileen killed her husband .." Reads much like Garrison Keillor and you can easily imagine the fun to be had during a Minnesota winter with zombies, a serial killer, small town politics with dry, self effacing mid-western humor. Uff da.
Profile Image for Kevin.
67 reviews3 followers
January 9, 2011
Zombies have invaded Lake Woebegotten on the edge of the prarie. This send up of the most famous fictional small town in Minnesota is quite enjoyable to fans of the braodcast, but if you don't see the pun in the name of the book or the author, this isn't for you.

I enjoyed it, though it was a bit rough in parts, the strength is in the middle secton of the book, covering the winter, which is told in 20 sections, in no particular order, certainly not chronological.
Recomended if you get the joke.
Profile Image for Mary Zimnik.
13 reviews2 followers
May 9, 2012
If you love A Prairie Home Companion and the real Garrison Keillor, likely truth is you will enjoy this book. Full disclosure: I actually thought I was reading the real guy until something off occurred to me about a quarter way through. The tone of the book was just a tad more biting than Keillor ever has been. But, the spirit of his respect and affection for the people of Minnesota is here. It's endlessly funny and moves along. It's worth it to get away from the other Zombie tales that might take themselves a bit too seriously.
Profile Image for SSteppenwolFF.
83 reviews28 followers
December 16, 2013
Excellent Zombie novel ... If Stephen King , Ray Bradbury , Brian Keene , Max Brooks and Justin Hunter got together to write a Zombie book this would be it ... Entertaining and funny and well written ... Give it a read you wont regret it !!!
Profile Image for Lora.
857 reviews25 followers
December 18, 2023
Z is for Zombies in my 2023 project of reading my way through the alphabet, and the project ended with a bang (and lots of laughs)!

Having grown up in Minnesota and spent time in small towns, it was hilarious to read about the zombie apocalypse meeting Minnesota Nice (and secretly not so nice). Great ending, too.

It should be noted that the book had its share of gore and violence, and absolutely no one was safe from dangers of all kinds - so this is not necessarily something for all fans of a Prairie Home Companion. But even the ugliness was entertainingly written. For example, a zombie is described as "moving less like a person and more like some kind of meatskin full of rodents or bugs, all strange ripples and convulsions and twitches."

One consequence of the zombie apocalypse was worrying about a future where the town paramedic has to do dentistry with the help of a library book. (Just thought I'd mention it because it had always bothered me that "The Walking Dead" never touched on or showed lack of dental care).

"Harrison Geillor" has also written a Twilight-story set in Lake Woebegotten. I definitely plan to read it!

Profile Image for Aimee.
148 reviews4 followers
May 31, 2022
I got this as an audiobook. Both the author and the narrator have nailed the sound and feel of Keillor and his Lake Wobegone stories. If you’re a fan of zombie novels but not A Prairie Home Companion, this book may not make sense to you. Likewise, if you’re a fan of A Prairie Hone Companion and not zombie stories, this may disturb you. If you’re a fan of both, you’ve found your people here.

It has the warm heart of Lake Woebegone, where Keillor always acknowledged the people were good but had their weaknesses and quirks and were human. In Lake Woebegotten, those weaknesses and quirks are ramped way up to include adultery and murder. We’ll never know if Lake Wobegone has a dominatrix, but Lake Wobegotten does. And like the diner in Lake Wobegone, the diner in Lake Wobegotten is full of relaxed people who love coffee and do t like to make a fuss about the living dead or end of the world.

A fun book!

Profile Image for Nathan Miller.
563 reviews2 followers
June 12, 2022
Night of the Living Dead meets A Prairie Home Companion. This book reads exactly like that, with all the tongue-in-cheek you'd expect. With both quintessential zombie apocalypse characters and that Lake Wobegon Minnesotan mentality we've come to know and love from APHC, I found myself laughing frequently through a well-crafted tale of a zombie uprising with a Romero-esque ending. To top it off, the audiobook's narrator sounds convincingly like Garrison Keillor. I gave it a 5th star for hilarity.
168 reviews1 follower
August 2, 2017
This book was hilarious. I mean I really like zombie fiction anyway, but to find myself in the company of small town folk who are serial killers, dominatrix mistresses, wannabe Norse gods, and also a handful of regular folk, in the middle of a zombie apocalypse that the townspeople decide to basically just "wait out" makes me laugh.
This book gets the full five starts from me, because if I can find a copy, I would absolutely read it again.
Profile Image for Lee.
534 reviews10 followers
May 12, 2019
So funny and entertaining! This is the best book I’ve listened to so far in 2019.
Small town over run with zombies and the locals take it in their stride! First time I’ve ever came across an eighty year old serial killer. It’s just so funny and it reminds me of ‘Fargo’ which is one of my all time favorite movies. I really hope the author has written more like this ! Highly recommended :)

‘She slammed a pair of decaying noggings together....’. Ha ha ha ....so so funny and enjoyable.
Profile Image for Cara.
568 reviews
July 22, 2017
This is a fun read for fans of Keillor's Lake Wobegon stories. It contains all the classic midwest humor, just with an uprising of the undead added in. The only way to stop a zombie is to chop off it's head, so be prepared for a much bloodier version of "the town that time forgot" than you might be expecting.
Profile Image for Diego.
259 reviews3 followers
February 12, 2020
É como se Terry Prachett resolvesse escreve um livro sobre o apocalipse zumbi.
Excelente, especialmente a discussão entre o padre, o pastor e o serial killer.
Profile Image for Raven.
103 reviews1 follower
March 16, 2020
this was outside my normal style, but i really enjoyed it. Silly, fun and also totally fucked up.
37 reviews60 followers
March 5, 2022
meh. The constant flashback/flash forward/ random-timeline storytelling was interesting at first and completely annoying toward the end.
Profile Image for Leslie Hallman.
413 reviews1 follower
December 13, 2024
.🎧 Of all the down home, humorous, poignant, and thoughtful books about zombies, this small city version highlights the characters of Minnesota town life.
Profile Image for Erika Powers.
370 reviews
August 3, 2018
Awesome! This story reflects true MN culture with zombiesque flair. Not many books I would read again but this is one of them. Loved it.
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