Happy Booker

Feed came so highly recommended by those whose opinions I trust most that I finally put aside my aversion to all things zombie and decided to read this book. And wow, am I so glad that I did. I was told that Feed did not have what you would usually expect from a book containing zombies, there weren't any vivid brain devouring scenes of blood and gore, the absence of which is what finally prompted me to pick this book up. There are essentially zombies all through this book and they are a huge part of the story, but this book is moreso about how people are surviving in a world turned to chaos and how essential an unbiased media presence would be when trying to once again create a semblance of order.

For me, the real heart of Feed was George and Shaun's story. I LOVED these characters. This adopted brother and sister pair very quickly stole my heart and their relationship fascinated me throughout the entire book. It reminded me of some documentaries that I've seen about identical twins, that they grow up relying so heavily on each other that it is difficult if not impossible to allow other people into their world. I love the way Shaun always protected his sister even though, from George's perspective, it always seemed that he was the impulsive, unruly, naughty child that she had to look out for, always warning him to stay out of trouble and worrying about his reckless behavior. But the truth was in the beautifully written small details. For example, Georgia wasn't comfortable touching people, so Shaun would automatically step up to offer a handshake when meeting someone. They knew each others thoughts and loved each other with a depth that goes beyond most siblings yet wasn't romantic or sexual even though it kind of gave that kind of vibe. 

There were some slow chapters where the author gave a lot of information about the politics, the world, and journalism. I wasn't really able to relate to the constant obsession with ratings. Especially considering the way George and Shaun were raised (view spoiler) it was hard for me to understand why they would also concern themselves so much with what seems to me such an irrelevant thing. But then, I'm not really that kind of blogger myself, things like that genuinely don't matter to me so it makes sense why its hard for me to relate to that in someone else. There were only a few small things that seemed inconsistent to me (view spoiler) but I enjoyed the story so much that these small issues were inconsequential. At the end of the day, I loved this story. Despite, or maybe even because of, the many many tears I shed at that very unexpected twist near the end. For me, that was the end of the book because I honestly can't remember what I read after that point although I know there were some more words, pages, etc after that. I just don't remember what they said.

I'm going to leave my first thoughts after turning the last page as part of this review: 

My masochistic heart can do nothing but rate this book a full 5 stars. I have to commend Mira Grant on how she managed to create such a compelling story and include zombies (which I don't even like btw) and introduce me to these amazing characters that I have no choice but to fall completely in love with and then, without warning, take it all away. I can almost picture the sadistic smile on this author's face as she gleefully ripped my heart out, stomped on it, then poked it a few times with Shaun's zombie stick, leaving me a broken, sobbing mess. Nice, Mira Grant, very nice. 

I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys dystopian fiction, sci-fi, and those who understand that not every story requires a H-E-A.