Hollow Kingdom by Kira Jane Buxton

"The Secret Life of Pets meets The Walking Dead" in this big-hearted, boundlessly beautiful romp through the Apocalypse and the world that comes after, where a foul-mouthed crow is humanity's only chance to survive Seattle's zombie problem. (Karen Joy Fowler, PEN/Faulkner Award-winning author of We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves) S.T., a domesticated crow, is a bird of simple pleasures: hanging out with his owner Big Jim, trading insults with Seattle's wild crows (i.e. "those idiots"), and enjoying the finest food humankind has to offer: Cheetos ®. But when Big Jim's eyeball falls out of his head, S.T. starts to think something's not quite right. His tried-and-true remedies -- from beak-delivered beer to the slobbering affection of Big Jim's loyal but dim-witted dog, Dennis -- fail to cure Big Jim's debilitating malady. S.T. is left with no choice but to abandon his old life and venture out into a wild and frightening new world with his trusty steed Dennis, where he suddenly discovers that the neighbors are devouring one other. Local wildlife is abuzz with rumors of Seattle's dangerous new predators. Humanity's extinction has seemingly arrived, and the only one determined to save it is a cowardly crow whose only knowledge of the world comes from TV. What could possibly go wrong?

This book sounds like it is written for me; zombies, talking animals, general hijinks. Unfortunately, I could not get into it! I just didn't care about any of the characters or what they were doing. It was also trying very hard to be funny and the humor just didn't land for me. The premise behind the zombies was very silly, although not very important to the plot so not a big deal.

My other issue was the writing itself. I felt like half of this book was just a list of different animals and the names for groups of animals. That combined with all the adjectives, similes, and metaphors, made this read like a high school English paper that had a very specific science prompt.

I really thought I was going to love this book, but it just didn't work for me.

I liked this, and I was rooting for S.T. and laughing at his blunt comments and colorful descriptions. However, I felt like I continuously lost momentum as the story went on, due to a few factors.

First, Buxton attempts the incredibly difficult maneuver of combining silly, lowbrow humor with deep sadness and loss. Two authors I've seen pull this off are Douglas Adams and David Wong (Jason Pargin), and they definitely went far heavier on the goofy humor, allowing the background pathos to exist quietly, only occasionally coming to the fore. Buxton showcases grief and heartache much more heavily, and that made this more difficult for me to read.

Second, S.T. lacks a coherent quest. He and Dennis sort of wander around wondering what to do, which takes all the wind out of the narrative sails. The establishment of a Purpose and a Big Bad comes very late. I can see that this may be a choice - S.T.'s disillusionment with the world serving up possible quests like Lucy holding the football is definitely meant as part of his psychological development. I just personally didn't feel invested in following that journey.

Finally, the whole driver for the plot and source of the Big Bad (zombie virus-ish thing) fell really flat for me. The social commentary was both tired (hello 1978's Dawn of the Dead) and insultingly reminiscent of “kids these days” grumbling about Millennials. Plus when the mechanism is explained and further impact realized, it just doesn't make any sense. I feel like this honestly would have been a better story if the zombie plague remained totally mysterious and just set up the need for S.T. to rebuild a life outside of being a pet.

Quite a delight. Always been a secret corvid admirer, and that mixed with a bloodhound and human's total demise (go Team Thanos) makes for a funny and thoughtful novel. Plot is loose and sometimes a bit confusing, but the writing is primarily fun with its wider message in tow rather than front and center. I did enjoy the side chapters from the Poodle, Genghis Cat, and others.