Zombie in Love and Zombie in Love: 2 + 1 (2015)
Written By: Kelly DiPucchio
Illustrated By: Scott Campbell
Genre: Picture Book
Pages: 32 pages (Hardcover)
Series: Zombie in Love series
Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Why I Chose It: It’s October, and I feel like I should get into the spirit of things. But what do you do when you really have to be in the right mood for horror and you’re a wuss of epic proportions? Find some super cute monsters, that’s what!
The premise:
Mortimer is looking for love. And he’s looking everywhere! He’s worked out at the gym (if only his arm wouldn’t keep falling off). He’s tried ballroom dancing lessons (but the ladies found him to be a bit stiff). He’s even been on stalemate.com. How’s a guy supposed to find a ghoul? When it seems all hope has died, could the girl of Mortimer’s dreams be just one horrifying shriek away?
SPOILERS AHEAD. IF YOU DON’T WANT TO KNOW IF THE ZOMBIE FINDS HIS LOVE, STOP READING!
Discussion: How do you make zombies cute? I mean they’re walking dead people. Monsters. But oh my gosh, Kelly DiPucchio does just that with Mortimer, a zombie, who is lonely and looking for a date to Cupid’s Ball. Weirdly enough, there’s nothing more forlorn than a zombie in a rotten tux, holding a bunch of dead flowers.
Poor Mortimer. It seems like there’s no one out there who appreciates his particular brand of weirdness. Until he meets Mildred. Obviously, this is a simple story. Boy meets girl, boy falls for girl, boy and girl get married. But one of the things I really love about it is that it tells a slightly deeper story underneath about finding the right girl. Or boy if we’re looking at it from Mildred’s point of view. These two wouldn’t have been happy with just anyone. They needed each other. My cousin and his wife use the term “mutual weirdness” to describe their relationship, and this book definitely made me think of them. It’s about the joy of finding someone who gets all of you. And recognizing the spark of all your quirks and nerdiness in another person.
And the second book, Zombie in Love: 2 + 1, is a lovely mirroring of that same idea. Mortimer and Mildred find a baby on their doorstep. And while they’re thrilled to be new parents, the fact that Sonny is alive and they are not presents some unique challenges for the undead couple. His teeth are growing in instead of falling out. He doesn’t want to eat brains. And he’s awake all day and sleeps through the night. The horror!
Mortimer and Mildred love Sonny, clearly, but they’re not sure they understand him. It’s only when they look at the things that make them similar rather than different that they come together as a family. An adorable family.
I think my favorite thing about these books is the humor. DiPucchio tells the story straight, as if it were the most serious tale in the world. It’s only with Scott Campbell’s illustrations that the joke comes through. The word zombie isn’t used a single time in the text, but Mortimer and Mildred are falling apart all over the pages. Mortimer buys his suit from a funeral home, Mildred loses not just her shoe but her entire foot, which Mortimer has to return. Be on the look out for the book Mildred reads Sonny called “Goodnight Tomb.” My daughter loves these books because the characters are engaging and funny. I love them because I catch something new every time we read them.
In Conclusion: If you’ve got kids, you’ll want to check these out. They’re cute, funny, and meaningful in a quirky way all their own. They’re a family favorite in our house.
These look super adorable. Thank you for sharing them with us!
I loved both these books. They’re so cute!