Zombie Factory: Culture, Stress & Sudden DeathMichael Korovkin & Peter Stephenson
Green Frigate Books, April 2010
ISBN: 978-0981243412
Zombie Factory is filled with information presented in a fun and completely intelligible format. Although I've read numerous articles and books on stress, I've never found one as practical and clearly defined as this book.
"In Zombie Factory people, and even a few animals, are seen experiencing highly distressing situations. The patterns of these stressful experiences can turn them into Zombie-like creatures who have great difficulty changing their lives. The authors argue that this also puts them at risk of developing heart attacks, seizures or strokes and suddenly dying. Readers of the book get to ‘listen in’ on people from around the world telling some truly harrowing stories. The story-tellers come from many walks of life: top-level executives, arctic hunters, spies, academics, policemen, and refugees, among others. The compelling stories they describe of sudden deaths suggest that it is not the amount of stress people are under, but the patterns of its application which turns it into a killer. Part of the lethal pattern is the kind and length of breaks from work that people often take. Those who have adapted to very high levels of stress can be at great risk if they take time out for the wrong length of time and do not maintain a level of adaptive response. Short breaks are usually good, and long sabbaticals are fine too–but many average vacations could turn out to be quite risky. The book is designed to help the reader re-think how they understand and experience stress in their lives by telling very provocative stories." - Green Frigate Books
Korovkin and Stephenson have a talent for explaining complicated concepts in a way that reaches the reader. Zombie Factory is compact, lucid, insightful, scientifically sound but eminently readable. The presentation is done smoothly such that the reader isn't bored by lengthy diatribes. Rather than drown us with facts and history, the authors do a great job of showing off the dynamics with small explanations that keep the reader engaged.
