Have you been watching The Walking Dead? Have you ever wondered what would happen if a zombie outbreak occurred here in Andover? First off, let's hope that never happens! As fun as zombie outbreaks appear to be on TV and in books (Pro: So much running and evading! So many explosions!), they are probably not that fun in real life (Con: So much starvation! So much getting eaten by zombies!). Now that that's cleared up, let's take a look at some resource to help you survive a hypothetical zombie apocalypse.
Research
Before you can hope to survive an army of the undead, first you need to understand the historical and sociological implications of a zombie outbreak. Let's look at some classic sources for some understanding.
World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks An account of the decade-long conflict between humankind and hordes of the predatory undead is told from the perspective of dozens of survivors who describe in their own words the epic human battle for survival. Essential reading for figuring out what our hypothetical zombie apocalypse would look and feel like.
The Walking Dead: Compendium One by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard A graphic novel compendium of the original comic book series that inspired the hit television series. "In a world ruled by the dead, we are forced to finally start living." More essential research into what a zombie outbreak would look like.
Night of the Living Dead George Romero's original, low-budget zombie masterpiece. This is ground zero for zombie research and the source for nearly all of popular culture's zombie tropes.
Skills
Once you've established a grounding in the basics of zombie theory, you can start to look into more advanced topics in apocalypse survival.
How to Survive Anything, Anywhere by Chris McNab Through this book doesn't specifically cover zombie outbreaks, it does feature skills such as navigation, creating shelter, finding water, defending yourself, and mountain survival, all of which seem apllicable to a zombie specific crisis, particularly if the zombie outbreak occurs while you are on a camping trip.
Camping for Dummies by Michael Hodgson A zombie apocalypse, by its nature, means that you will probably be spending a lot of time outdoors. Best to get familiar with it now!
Krav Maga: Basic Techniques, Yellow Belt Program If you're going to have to engage an undead creature in hand-to-hand combat its best to do it using the official self-defense program of the Israeli military.
Entertainment
Even though you'll be in a near constant battle for your own survival, that doesn't mean that you can't carve out some time to enjoy yourself! Here are some entertainment sources to while away those zombie-filled hours.
The Road by Cormac McCarthy McCarthy's Pulitzer Prize winning novel recounts a post-apocalyptic world in which a man and his son are forced to make difficult decisions in order to survive. While there are no zombies in this book, the bleak landscapes and lack of hope will surely resonate.
The Best of Fela Kuti A well-rounded retrospective of the acclaimed Afrobeat master, featuring the track "Zombie". This is of course assuming that there will be electricity in the post-apocalyptic world.
The New Yorker Big Book of Cats The post apocalyptic world is a pretty bleak place; why not lighten things up with some stories about cats!