Book: Dead Jed: Adventures Of A Middle School Zombie by Scott Craven

Published December 2013 by Month9 Books|226 pages

Where I Got It: Kindle store

Series: Dead Jed #1

Genre: Middle Grade

You can find Dead Jed: Adventures Of A Middle School Zombie on goodreads

Goodreads Summary: 

Dead Jed is Shaun of the Dead meets Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Jed’s not your typical junior high geek. He is, to use the politically-correct term, cardiovascularly-challenged. And while his parents have attempted to shield him from the implications of being ‘different’ for as long as they could (Jed was 8 and at a friend’s sister’s birthday party when he blew his lips off onto the cake in front of everyone, finally prompting the “Big Talk” from his parents and an emergency SuperGlue repair by his dad), 7th grade at Pine Hollow Middle School as a target of Robbie the supreme school bully and his pack of moronic toadies is rapidly becoming unbearable.

From being stuffed in a filled trash can as “dead meat” and into a trophy case as the bully’s “prize,” to literally having his hand pulled off in the boys’ room (Jed’s always losing body parts. Luckily, a good stapler and some duct tape and he’s back in the action) and a cigarette put in it and try to frame him for the recent reports of smoking in the school, Jed’s had enough and is ready to plan his revenge. Besides, it’s awesome what you can do when you’re already dead.

What I Thought:

I don’t read a lot of middle grade, but I liked this one!  I haven’t read the Diary Of A Wimpy Kid books, but from what I know about them, I think kids who like those books will really like Dead Jed.

I like Jed, and how hard he tried to fit in, even though he has a medical condition that basically means he’s a zombie.  I really like that it’s something that he has to deal with during the entire book, and that you see who Jed really is.  Being a zombie is only part of who Jed is, and he’s just a normal kid trying to get through 7th grade.  It made the book a lot more original and different, and it really highlighted how horrible it can be to be different in middle school.

Dead Jed is definitely clever and light-hearted and witty, and I couldn’t help but laugh a few times throughout the book.  It’s definitely a fun book that also has a lot of heart.  And Jed is definitely bullied and has to deal with people who aren’t tolerant of his condition, but I really liked how he dealt with it.

I liked the pop culture references, especially the zombie pop culture references.  You can’t go wrong with Michael Jackson’s Thriller, especially at a school dance!

Let’s Rate It:

Dead Jed is a fun book, and it’s definitely a great middle grade read- but I think a lot of people would enjoy this story, regardless of age.  Dead Jed gets 3 stars.