So, a little background on this before I get to the 5-star review: I recently started a new job and I knew from our very first team meeting that I was in the right place. We spent half the meeting trading book recommendations! And this was one of the recommendations and I am very, very grateful for it: Devolution: A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre by Max Brooks, the author of World War Z.

The idea is that Mt. Rainier has erupted and the eruption has trapped people who live on its slopes and in the path of the eruption. It is also driving animals out of the forest, fleeing the lava and destruction – and that includes some predators we thought were urban legends.

Katie and her husband, Dan, have just moved to Greenloop – an eco-village on the slopes of Mount Rainier. It’s a small group of smart homes, everything computerized, groceries delivered by drone, living in harmony with nature and all that; honestly, the people are a little ridiculous. This means they are totally unprepared for having to take care of themselves after the eruption – none of the residents own a hammer or a shovel! When the Sasquatch begin checking out their little village, some of the residents are horrified at the idea of setting up some sort of defenses or harming the great apes. One man insists that apes are herbivores and naturally peaceful (clearly this man has never watched a nature documentary). But they are very, very wrong.

The story is told documentary style, with bits of Katie’s journal, interviews with park rangers and relatives, and background info from Sasquatch “scholars.”

While some of the townspeople are pretty useless, others find their fighting spirit. Eventually, the group has to band together to stay alive and prepare for the final showdown…

Absolutely loved it. Devoured it in two days (perfect Christmas reading ?). I loved World War Z when I read it, and now I have added The Zombie Survival Guide to the TBR pile. And I hope Jimmy is enjoying The Murderbot Diaries as much as I enjoyed this one.