A Journal of the Crazy Year

Fresh thinking and feeling animate this heartfelt postapocalyptic novel. John Cruz’s awakening after four years in a catatonic stupor is part of a worldwide healing of the insane. On the other hand, mentally healthy people are losing their minds, falling into comas, succumbing to vicious madness, or engaging in bestial cannibalism. The cause might be the recurrence of a global pandemic from the early 1900s, or a huge comet passing through our solar system. All John cares about is saving as much of his newly recovered home life as he can, and he’s willing to gun down any number of “crazies” to that end. When his beloved wife becomes a zombie-like, flesh-craving fiend, however, John faces new practical problems and moral dilemmas. The book is stuffed with untrimmable, character-driven, cogent dialogue, and Carr’s sincere investment in the concept of people groping their way through hell on Earth makes his story a fascinating read all the way to its chilly, barely hopeful conclusion. [em](BookLife) [/em]