Dawn of the Dead

By: George A. Romero, Susanna Sparrow

Narrated by: Jonathan Davis

Length: 7 hrs and 7 mins

Publisher's Summary

George A. Romero terrified a generation with his iconic horror film and with this cult-classic novel. Immerse yourself in this unparalleled vision from the revered master of the zombie apocalypse...and be terrified all over again.

Zombies have overpowered the living and ravaged the world. Society has collapsed as humans race to save themselves. No one knows how far the creatures have spread or how to stop them. In downtown Philadelphia four people escape the chaos and find shelter in a vacated shopping mall. But as their greed spirals and the undead close in, their haven for waiting out the end of the world becomes the last battleground for survival. And there is nowhere left to hide.

©1978 The Dawn Associates; 2012 The MKR Group, Inc.; 2015 First Gallery Books. (P)2015 Audible, Inc.

Not All That Good

I know this is a Romero zombie story, but it's really not that good. The characters are as flat as paper, and the 1970s-ish-ness of everything (characters, plot, action, thoughts) is rather boring. Characters do and say things that make no sense whatsoever. They are stereotypically what you'd expect from a B grade movie made in the 70s.

Kudos to the narrator, though, as he did an excellent job of reading the story, which otherwise I probably would have quit listening and retuned the book. Even so, after the first hour, I almost returned it, as it really isn't worth the time to listen to it. The only reason I chugged through it was because it's considered a classic and provides perspective on the zombie stories that come after it. That, and I bought it on sale.

I didn't specifically remember the movie, so I reviewed it and it's the same level of 60s-70s cheesiness.

the novelization is a lackluster affair

George A. Romero is the grandfather of the zombie genre, and perhaps the most influential filmmaker of all-thing zombies. His influence has shone down upon pop culture in the nearly-forty years that followed the release of his movie, Dawn of the Dead. You can see it all around you right now with The Walking Dead in comics and on TV, Jonathan Maberry’s terrific Rot & Ruin series, Brian Keene’s The Rising, and Stephen King’s Cell. I doubt that without Romero any of these latter stories would measure up quite as well. They are each a product of a very prolific history that traces back to the Romero movies.

So, it’s more than a bit of a shame that I found the novelization of Dawn of the Dead to be so tepid. While Romero is a fine filmmaker, his work as a novelist, along with co-writer Susanna Sparrow, leaves quite a lot to be desired. Originally published in 1978, the narrative holds up rather well and there are only a few anachronistic elements to remind you how many decades have passed since it was written. We get a brief nod to President Carter and, later, a “huge” twenty-one inch TV set that our survivors have to “lug” up the stairs. My primary issue boils down to the writing itself, though. Stylistically, it’s a mess. Character viewpoints shift on a whim, as if to capture the frenetic nature of a zombie apocalypse – however, the prose is fairly languid and wordy, which slows things down tremendously. And this being a zombie novel, we get plenty of references to the undead but with nary a change in descriptors, and I lost count of how many times the authors referred to them simply as ‘ghouls.’ It’s a lot, though. A lot.

With a seven-hour run time, this audiobook recording feels overly longer and much too ponderous. For a story about the fall of humanity and a quartet of survivors seeking shelter in a shopping mall overrun with zombies, it really should be a lot more energetic and punchy. There are only a few really good confrontations between the living and the walking dead, but too often I felt like the human characters existed in this novel mostly to just talk about the zombies. And we get a lot of talk about zombies. We get way more talk about zombies than we get actual zombies. By the time the finale rolls around and the survivors are confronted with a band of bikers/scavengers, the sudden conflict finally gives the book a bit of life, only far too late.

Production-wise, the quality is terrific and the recording comes through crisp and clear. This is an Audible Studios production, and, frankly, I expect it to be good. Jonathan Davis’s narration is solid, and he delivers a great reading of the material. Characters were presented well and with enough differentiation to keep track of dialogue. I don’t really have any qualms about Davis’s work here, and he does a serviceable job with the material he’s been given.

I’m hesitant to recommend this title for anyone other than die-hard fans and Romero completists. While the film version of Dawn of the Dead is perfect bit of zombie cinema, the novelization is a lackluster affair that oftentimes descends into pure boredom. As far as zombie books go, though, there are many other better offerings out there. Otherwise, stick with the film version on this one.

Audiobook purchased for review by ABR.

Please find this complete review and many others at my review blog

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Not up to the film

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

No...see the movie...much better.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

Knew it was coming since I saw the movie.

Would you listen to another book narrated by Jonathan Davis?

Maybe

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

Actually..I think the movie was first.

Any additional comments?

I loved the film but the book is nothing but a retelling of the movie. There is no real new development of characters or story, just a recreation of what you will see in the film. The only difference is the book takes a long time to listen to. My advice...stick with the movie. It's a classic. This is not.

More like a 3 1/2 zombie story

I can remember watching the Dawn of the Dead as my very first zombie movie when I was young. Then the remake in the early 2000's was a flashback to the nostalgic age of my youth. Now, listening to the audio version of it was fun overall.

I find it hard to get the overall suspense and horror of zombies on such a two-dimensional medium. Seeing them edge closer is half the fun. The story in itself wasn't mind shattering, just a survive if you can that kind of rushes through getting really invested in the characters. I couldn't tell the guys apart for the first half of the book.

All in all, a fun listen.

The classic zombie book

I'm not sure when this was written. I think it must have been one of the original zombie books, from the promotional material. Regardless, it still managed a certain amount of horror and terror.

I got this book on one of the daily deals. For that, it was a great buy.

Dan Benson

An oldie but a goodie

Narrator was awesome and although I've read this book multiple times, it's still so entertaining.

Solid story

Where does Dawn of the Dead rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

It's solidly in the middle. Some areas feel rushed, while others give far more insight to what was happening than the movie did. Glad I got this to get a better picture of what was happening.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Dawn of the Dead?

The raid on the tenement house.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No.

if you lived the movie you will live the book

I read some negative reviews on this book but I am not sure what they were expecting. I almost didn't purchase this audiobook because of those reviews. However I am glad that I did buy it.

I do not want to spoil it for some who have not seen the movie or know about George Romero (if that were possible) but like I said...if you enjoyed the original movie you will also enjoy this book.

The movie in a different format. That's about all.

I have only myself to blame. I am a huge fan of DotD. It is the movie that put me on the path to the career I am on currently (zombie author). It is easy to see the movie as you read or listen to the audio version of this adaptation. There are a couple of instances where a sliver of something is added to give you perhaps a new insight, but for the most part, this is the movie redone.

Just about anybody could have sat in front of their DVD player and written this scene-for-scene adaptation and then threw in the possible thoughts of Steve, Roger, Fran and Peter. This did make Peter seem less likable than in the movie. Also, Steve comes across as a bit of a wimp and Fran sort of toughens up and adopts a hard shell. Not sure if I agree with those choices in the narrative. Anyway, if you are a mega-fan, you will probably add this just to have it, but don't expect much that you don;t already know from watching the movie all those times.

The narration was just okay. I do wonder if the person had ever seen the movie. Perhaps it might have helped if he was going to try and narrate something that most people who listen are more than passingly familiar.

It was still a nice gift from somebody who knew I love zombies, and this movie in particular.

Adds to the movie.

I'm huge fan of dawn of the dead. This book adds more information about characters and setting. The narrator was perfect. I felt like was watching the movie with added scenes. Great job on the book.