Book Review: "Survivor Max"

Young Adult (YA) literature is by and large a wasteland devoid of substance. There are occasional bright spots amidst the sea of paranormal romances and poorly-written novels, though. Survivor Max by Davi Barker is one such bright spot. Well, two, actually.

Here's hoping book 3 gets released eventually, too!

It may be a bit of a stretch to call it "YA fiction," since the protagonist is only 11, but the subject matter is probably too mature for the "Junior Fiction" category. This is a zombie novel. People die gruesomely. Violence between survivors occurs.

Peppered throughout are references to zombie tropes and in-jokes, including the refusal to use the word "zombie" at all, just like so many classic zombie movies. There are disputes over which term to apply, like "creeper" or "lamebrains," but the obvious name never comes up.

As for the story itself, I don't want to provide spoilers, so this will be vague. Max is in school when he gets a text from his dad that things are bad and he needs to get home immediately. On returning home, he discovers many oddities, culminating in being attacked by a zombie. He evades this zombie and puts his scout training to good use gathering supplies and fortifying his apartment while figuring out what he can about what's going on. After some time, events transpire leading him to escape to his former school in search of supplies, where he meets a group of survivors trying to build a new community in the wake of the zombie outbreak. But the survivors may be as dangerous as the undead roaming outside...

This book also has an interesting take on zombie mythology, both in the infection process and the resultant capabilities of the zombie. Explaining it would spoil plot points though. Sorry. There are also several explanations of Max's thought process as he decides how to solve the problems he encounters, and none of them broke my suspension of disbelief, so that's a huge plus too.

The best part about this book, though is that the author has been a long-time fan of cryptocurrency. He has helped spearhead cryptocurrency charity. He was even detained by TSA agents who demanded to search his bag for bitcoins. It should thus come as no surprise that both Too Smart to Die and School Bites are available for purchase with bitcoin!

Davi Barker is not only a fan of zombie movies and comics, but also a former co-host of the libertarian/anarchist talk show Freedom Feens. There are also references to libertarian in-jokes for those who know about the Free State Project, the Porcupine Freedom Festival, and related events. You don't need to know them for the story, but it adds a layer of fun if you're in the loop. There's even a parody of Alex Jones. So take a look!

Auithor's note: previously posted on Steemit