Book Review: The Zombies of Lake Woebegotten

By Sandy Amazeen Oct 24, 2010, 21:12 GMT

The town of Lake Woebegotton, MN 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 an onslaught of the dead. ...more

This grand romp parodies the very popular National Public Radio program by Garrison Keillor. Set in a small Minnesota town where all the women are brave, the men pure of heart, each child more unique then the last, residents suddenly find themselves having to deal with a newly risen horde of zombies. One of the seemingly harmless residents had been murdering people for years, burying the males in his basement while secreting the females up in the attic. All old man Levitt’s misdeeds come to light with the emergence of his victims who have developed an appetite for flesh.

Mayoral wantabe Eileen Munson, tired of her husband’s literal passion for the red mustang he has been restoring for years, decided enough is enough and murdered him. Only problem is, he won’t stay where she puts him and is walking around the woods naked while sporting a stiffy. As for old man Levitt, he has decided it’s high time to dig up the local cemeteries and start marching throughout countryside with a zombie army at his disposal. It will fall to a tiny band of locals with a herd of pigs to put an end to Levitt’s plan and keep the town safe for the coming spring.

Without a doubt, this is one of the most amusing zombie tales you are likely to read and while it isn’t necessary to be familiar with NPR’s Lake Woebegone, it certainly helps as the characters bear a strong resemblance to those on the program. The addition of zombie animals makes for a fun twist and the conclusion is so vividly imagined you can almost smell the barbeque. Graphic descriptions of death and mayhem prevent this from being suitable for younger readers or those with a delicate stomach, for the rest of us, this is great fun.