Review: The Christian Zombie Killers Handbook

The zombies are coming. In fact, according to Jeff Kinley, author of The Christian Zombie Killers Handbook: Slaying the Living Dead Within (Thomas Nelson, 2011), they are already here, with the "zombies" representing sinful human nature.

Kinley alternates between fictional, zombie-filled "Episodes" and "Chapters" in which he elaborates on human depravity and the hope found in Jesus. He explains foundational theological concepts in an interesting, personal way, often illustrating his points with stories from his own life. After describing the filth of the human soul, he encourages readers to surrender to Christ's cleansing power and allow Him to kill the zombie within.

Unfortunately, the zombie episodes don't add much to the book. The story is trite, including clichéd, zombie-style gore, such as: "It was clearly a man, though the top part of his head was missing, and the brain was gone." Worse, Kinley fails to draw a significant connection between his zombie tale and his theological observations. The episodes end abruptly in the midst of a zombie apocalypse, with no hope of escape or redemption. I understand the motive for including the story-to hold the attention of a younger audience-but it ends up confusing the analogy and diminishing the quality of the book.

Though Kinley would have done well to omit the zombie portion of his book, many 13-year-old boys will be interested in his introduction to basic tenants of the Christian faith.