Common Sense Media Review
By Darienne Stewart
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Sweet, silly zombie family tale full of ghoulish giggles.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 4+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
Zombies Mortimer and Mildred are happy to take in a baby left in front of their tomb. But they fret: Sonny's teeth are coming in instead of falling out, he sleeps all night and is awake all day, and he hardly ever cries. The doctor assures them that Sonny's healthy and happy, but Mildred and Mortimer are still anxious. They redouble their efforts, waiting for the day their baby finally does something monstrous.
Is It Any Good?
ZOMBIE IN LOVE 2+1 cheekily turns new-baby stories on their heads with delightful results. The absurd backwardness of the plot -- parents fretting because their baby doesn't scream and cry -- guarantees happy giggles rather than grossed-out groans. Grown-ups who know what it's like to be zombie parents will appreciate winking references to being "dead tired" and the worried parents "racking their brains."
Illustrator Scott Campbell's watercolors soften the gore and are packed with tiny details: rotten-apple baby food, a pull toy made of brains, itty-bitty earthworms cavorting in every spread, and bookshelves filled with clever titles (Make Way for Zombies, I Want My Brain Back, and Campbell's own Hug Machine).
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about how Mildred, Mortimer, and Sonny are similar to and different from a typical family. Imagine what might be in store when Sonny is old enough for school.
Why is this book so funny and not scary? Would it be different if it were a cartoon on TV or a movie in a theater?
Parents can share what made the characters nervous when they first had a baby.
Book Details
- Author :
- Illustrator : Scott Campbell
- Genre : Family Life
- Topics : Fantasy
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Atheneum
- Publication date : December 30, 2014
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 4 - 8
- Number of pages : 32
- Available on : Nook, Audiobook (abridged), Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : September 30, 2025
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