Tales of the Geeky Vixen

I am not a fan of Mondays. Never have been. Like the old song says, "Rainy days and Mondays always get me down..." (However, I am kind of a fan of rainy days, even if they do make me a little sad.) I am tired as all get out, and I hate being in limbo (i.e., I want someone to tell me one way or another the outcome of this thing I want to do).

Also, I think a lot has to do with the reading I did this weekend. I bought The Walking Dead trade paperbacks a while ago, and Brad got into them right away. (Apparently I was in one of my "hoard books but not read them" phases at the time.) Anyhoo, he raved about how good they were, and I decided that when I had a free moment I'd start reading them. Finally, after much coaxing, I cracked open the first book Thursday night. A couple hours later I had blasted through the first three trades. Twenty-four hours later, I had finished the first 6. Yesterday I finished issues 31-48. I kinda wish I'd stopped at 44. Don't get me wrong--every rave review this book gets is totally well-deserved. It's probably one of the best series I've ever read. But the events of the last two issues shook me to the core. It really takes a lot to rattle me--I'm not easily bothered by most things I read or watch. But this--this really got to me. I guess since I'd saturated my mind with the book over the course of 3 days, I couldn't put it out of my head when I tried to go to sleep.

I told myself this morning that was it for me. No more Walking Dead. The more I think about it, though, the more I think that's a bad choice. The fact that the story has occupied every corner of my mind for days is a testament to how good the storytelling is, and how much you truly care about the denizens of this desolate landscape. I felt like the kid in The Neverending Story, who locked himself in the school basement just to go through Atreyu's journey with him. When people die in the story, I feel the loss too.

That being said, if you're a fan of zombie movies or just some good horror writing, pick up this title. Yes, it is a challenge to read at times, since these people endure horrors at the hands not only of the undead, but of the soulless among the living. It's definitely not for kids or the faint of heart, and it won't be a walk in the park. The action is building toward issue 50; after the action we've seen, I can't imagine what Robert Kirkman's got in store for the gang.