Review - I'm Undead and Hungry!: Meet a Zombie

I'm Undead and Hungry!: Meet a Zombie (Monster Buddies)
by Shannon Knudsen
illustrated by Chiara Buccheri
Date: 2014
Publisher: Millbrook Press
Reading level: C
Book type: picture book non-fiction
Pages: 24
Format: e-book
Source: library

Meet Roscoe. He's a zombie! Roscoe came back from the dead. He likes to snack on brains. But don't be scared. Roscoe's not real. He's one of the monsters you meet in stories. He just wants to tell you about zombies. Find out what turns people into zombies. Learn about different kinds of zombies around the world. And discover where zombie stories come from. You'll have a spooky time with this monster buddy!

(synopsis from Goodreads)

This book was kind of a disappointment. I guess I was expecting a little more information about real zombie beliefs rather than the fictional versions (although, even then, the information presented is a little weak). I think the problem is that this book is aimed at children so young that some information has to be left out, lest the book end up too scary.

I did enjoy the section on zombies around the world (I didn't realize there are Chinese and Norse zombie myths!) but it's far too short. Much of the book is spent on fictional facts like how slow zombies are and what they eat. There are so many variations on zombies in fiction today, though, that the book seems a little incomplete. (The fact that the links for further reading just point to fictional picture books with zombie characters doesn't help. I was expecting more factual sources, perhaps about different cultures and how they view zombies.)

So, overall, this didn't thrill me. It's too light for older readers. Maybe it would be okay for really young kids who have an interest in zombies, but... how many of those are there, really? (I was traumatized by Michael Jackson's "Thriller" music video when I was six; I wouldn't have wanted anything to do with zombies for quite a while after that!)

Premise: 3/5
Meter: n/a
Writing: 3/5
Illustrations: 3/5
Originality: 2/5

Enjoyment: 1/5

Overall: 2.17 out of 5