idrinkkombucha OP t1_j4xiex6 wrote on January 18, 2023 at 11:15 PM

Reply to comment by RockofChickamauga63 in World War Z - not good by idrinkkombucha

I don’t mind head hopping characters. Like the Walking Dead, the apocalyptic horror novel ‘The Stand’ does the same thing, hosting a large cast and making for a fat book. The difference between that and WWZ, is that The Stand has a story that progresses and, while it frequently changes POV, it will return to characters and show their journey progressing, and ultimately tying in with the other characters, and so there is movement, engagement, and suspense, where with WWZ it is just random snippet after random snippet, no movement, no urgency.

RockofChickamauga63 t1_j4xmmw4 wrote on January 18, 2023 at 11:43 PM

I respectfully disagree. I’m not sure how far you got into the book, or if you finished the book, but the book is not just a scattered bunch of random POVs up until the end. They all track key developments in “World War Z” with the beginning obviously starting with the first instances of outbreaks in China, then progressing through rumor and rural spread, then eventually the Great Panic, and then the brink, then humanity fighting back, until the end when it seems the apocalypse has been largely halted and reversed. The POVs, especially as you reach the middle and end, often tell a personal story that ties directly into the larger sequence of events in the story. It builds, and I really did feel a strong sense of urgency as the story went from rumors of outbreaks to shit actually hitting the fan. And then the sense of triumph and strength as the countries began to really learn from events and adapt. I mean just compare the POV from the Battle of Yonkers to the later reclamations and new tactics used by the American troops at these end of the book.

At least when I read it I certainly felt like there was a broader narrative being advanced behind every single POV and that there absolutely was motion and urgency. But to each their own I guess.