karen's Reviews > Zone One
Zone One
by
by
![45618](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1596291582p2/45618.jpg)
looking for great books to read during black history month...and the other eleven months? i'm going to float some of my favorites throughout the month, and i hope they will find new readers!
AHHHHHHHH!!!
jesus christ, but colson whitehead can write. i read the intuitionist way back when everyone was praising it to the moon as the masterpiece of the next great american writer, but that book didn't really do a lot for me, while this one keel-hauled me.
it was strolling along at a solid four stars until the ending, which just reached in-between my ribs with insistent fingers and squeezed and squeezed and squeezed. the last 100 pages or so just blew me away. and it's not even a long book, 259 pages, but it took me three days to read; partly circumstantial, partly because unpacking his sentences takes a really long time. this man is the master of the dense sentence. and also at creating these descriptive arabesques of imaginative digression: speculations about characters that do not exist in the novel as such, but are representative of a type of person who might still be existing in this post-infestation world and what that type of person might be doing, thinking, even though they are only a subjunctive character in a three-sentence authorial daydream. who bothers to do that? it is madness! but a madness that stands out as a truly original technique of an incredible writer.
this is both not at all a zombie book and the purest zombie book i have ever read. it is so hard to describe it. i am going to have to read it again, because circumstances muddied up the first half of the book for me a little. part of that is that i really feel this book should be read with as few breaks in the reading as possible. there are so many details, many of whose significance do not become apparent until much later - it is best to read with full attention, in as straight a sitting as you can manage.
ceridwen's review is probably the best review i have ever read. not just for this book, but ever. i would love to review her review, but i don't think i am even savvy enough to articulate how perfect that review is, never mind trying to discuss this book. i love this part best: Then there is the New Yorkiness of this book, a resident recounting his mixed irritation and affection for the cityest of American cities, carefully prodding nostalgia that at any moment might stir and bite. And when it does, put it down with a bullet. that is a perfect encapsulation of this book. whitehead takes the danny hoch stance of "gee, new york (brooklyn, for hoch) is really changing" and ramps it up with fury. and yet - it is new york, and always will be, no matter how many trust fund babies move in, no matter how many buildings have their outsides gentrified or mirrored, no matter how many zombies cross over into it from new jersey. whitehead's final panning shot of the zombies is a masterful and familiar descriptive passage, despite being utterly horrifying. this is new york, warts and all.
it's a very emotional book, despite a main character who is more a bundle of instinctual calculations than emotions. even before the events, he is someone who carefully gauges what he can get away with, what he can do to pass through life with the least resistance, rather than someone who is experiencing life as a series of emotional occurrences. a coaster. so, in many ways, the perfect observer, the perfect survivor. and yet - the surroundings are definitely meant to inspire an emotional response, even to non new-yorkers. new york is a microcosm to the world, after all, the corroded melting pot. and this situation, eyeballed by this character - the extraordinary translated by the mediocre - is made all the more haunting for it.
now i understand the whitehead hype.
aside: i was actually in tribeca on tuesday, where the action of this novel takes place, and i could not help superimposing the narrative upon the scenery - the nearness to halloween didn't hurt matters. but yeah, a terrible part of town to try to withstand a zombie apocalypse. and, to ceridwen, i understand your bristling at the midwest barb - there was a little one for queens, too. why i oughtta!
come to my blog!
AHHHHHHHH!!!
jesus christ, but colson whitehead can write. i read the intuitionist way back when everyone was praising it to the moon as the masterpiece of the next great american writer, but that book didn't really do a lot for me, while this one keel-hauled me.
it was strolling along at a solid four stars until the ending, which just reached in-between my ribs with insistent fingers and squeezed and squeezed and squeezed. the last 100 pages or so just blew me away. and it's not even a long book, 259 pages, but it took me three days to read; partly circumstantial, partly because unpacking his sentences takes a really long time. this man is the master of the dense sentence. and also at creating these descriptive arabesques of imaginative digression: speculations about characters that do not exist in the novel as such, but are representative of a type of person who might still be existing in this post-infestation world and what that type of person might be doing, thinking, even though they are only a subjunctive character in a three-sentence authorial daydream. who bothers to do that? it is madness! but a madness that stands out as a truly original technique of an incredible writer.
this is both not at all a zombie book and the purest zombie book i have ever read. it is so hard to describe it. i am going to have to read it again, because circumstances muddied up the first half of the book for me a little. part of that is that i really feel this book should be read with as few breaks in the reading as possible. there are so many details, many of whose significance do not become apparent until much later - it is best to read with full attention, in as straight a sitting as you can manage.
ceridwen's review is probably the best review i have ever read. not just for this book, but ever. i would love to review her review, but i don't think i am even savvy enough to articulate how perfect that review is, never mind trying to discuss this book. i love this part best: Then there is the New Yorkiness of this book, a resident recounting his mixed irritation and affection for the cityest of American cities, carefully prodding nostalgia that at any moment might stir and bite. And when it does, put it down with a bullet. that is a perfect encapsulation of this book. whitehead takes the danny hoch stance of "gee, new york (brooklyn, for hoch) is really changing" and ramps it up with fury. and yet - it is new york, and always will be, no matter how many trust fund babies move in, no matter how many buildings have their outsides gentrified or mirrored, no matter how many zombies cross over into it from new jersey. whitehead's final panning shot of the zombies is a masterful and familiar descriptive passage, despite being utterly horrifying. this is new york, warts and all.
it's a very emotional book, despite a main character who is more a bundle of instinctual calculations than emotions. even before the events, he is someone who carefully gauges what he can get away with, what he can do to pass through life with the least resistance, rather than someone who is experiencing life as a series of emotional occurrences. a coaster. so, in many ways, the perfect observer, the perfect survivor. and yet - the surroundings are definitely meant to inspire an emotional response, even to non new-yorkers. new york is a microcosm to the world, after all, the corroded melting pot. and this situation, eyeballed by this character - the extraordinary translated by the mediocre - is made all the more haunting for it.
now i understand the whitehead hype.
aside: i was actually in tribeca on tuesday, where the action of this novel takes place, and i could not help superimposing the narrative upon the scenery - the nearness to halloween didn't hurt matters. but yeah, a terrible part of town to try to withstand a zombie apocalypse. and, to ceridwen, i understand your bristling at the midwest barb - there was a little one for queens, too. why i oughtta!
![](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1528725630i/25720315.png)
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Reading Progress
October 25, 2011
–
Started Reading
October 25, 2011
– Shelved
October 27, 2011
–
Finished Reading
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Courtney
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Oct 25, 2011 09:29AM
![Courtney](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1287949334p1/1239892.jpg)
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Shit, karen. *blushes*
At least we are not from Connecticut; then we would be hopping mad.
At least we are not from Connecticut; then we would be hopping mad.
![karen](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1596291582p1/45618.jpg)
but seriously - i read this review when you first wrote it, and then after i read the book, i reread it and my mind was blown. it is perfect. you are such a good reviewer i wanna smack you a little. smack!
I smack you back! Smack!
I was surprised by how much humor was in all the fancy sentences. Sometimes writing with semicolons thinks nothing is funny.
I was surprised by how much humor was in all the fancy sentences. Sometimes writing with semicolons thinks nothing is funny.
![karen](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1596291582p1/45618.jpg)
incidentally, to all, the portion of the floor i rule with an iron fist at my job is also called "zone one." we have a much more controlled zombie situation.
![Tuck](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1461699620p1/565487.jpg)
incidentally, to all, the portion of the floor ..."
corporate zombies?
![Jennifer Didik](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1641943453p1/189861.jpg)
The other nice thing about Colson is that he is very, very cute. Look how awkward!
![awkward colson whitehead](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1379761676i/203948.jpg)
He could use a hug!
Observe him eating a sandwich!
![colson eats a sandwich](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1379761676i/203949.jpg)
Writers are just like you!
![awkward colson whitehead](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1379761676i/203948.jpg)
He could use a hug!
Observe him eating a sandwich!
![colson eats a sandwich](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1379761676i/203949.jpg)
Writers are just like you!
(P.S. The above post was going to be my review for Zone One before I read it, but then the book deserved better then my goofing off.)
![Krok Zero](https://cdn.statically.io/img/s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/m_25x33-8a3530ed95c3dbef8bf215b080559b09.png)
![karen](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1596291582p1/45618.jpg)
![Krok Zero](https://cdn.statically.io/img/s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/m_25x33-8a3530ed95c3dbef8bf215b080559b09.png)
![karen](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1596291582p1/45618.jpg)
![Will Byrnes](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1291462190p1/1526851.jpg)
![Chris](https://cdn.statically.io/img/s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/f_25x33-d79c46f9428d2aea1444d67c091766a6.png)
![Wendy Darling](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1379959930p1/2745288.jpg)
hah hah. I already "liked" this way back when, but saw your comment and had to post. I tend to trust your taste about zzzzoombbbieesss so I'm definitely going to read it.
![karen](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1596291582p1/45618.jpg)
![karen](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1596291582p1/45618.jpg)
![David](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1472052100p1/3073544.jpg)
(Did you get my wonderful Xmas card???)
![karen](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1596291582p1/45618.jpg)
![Lou](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1312212794p1/3699303.jpg)
![karen](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1596291582p1/45618.jpg)
![Lou](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1312212794p1/3699303.jpg)
Thank you very much I will let the story speak for itself and give it a read.
![Joshua Nomen-Mutatio](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1363779897p1/1447864.jpg)
Clinical beauty is where it's at.
![karen](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1596291582p1/45618.jpg)
you get extra-special gratitude, because i don't like nines. i like nice round numbers, and nines make me anxious.
SEE THE GRATITUDE??
![](https://cdn.statically.io/img/i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/hostedimages/1379779636i/394990.jpg)
not many people know this, but gratitude looks like cute kitty cats
![Michael](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1630384520p1/4486167.jpg)
![Dennis](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1264461173p1/746933.jpg)
![karen](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1596291582p1/45618.jpg)
![Jeanne](https://cdn.statically.io/img/s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_25x33-ccd24e68f4773d33a41ce08c3a34892e.png)