49 pages • 1 hour read
Max BrallierThe Last Kids on Earth and the Zombie Parade
Fiction | Graphic Novel/Book | Middle Grade | Published in 2016A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Themes
The Fear of Losing Loved Ones
Before the Monster Apocalypse, Jack lived a lonely life. His foster family didn’t care for him—evident in the fact they left him behind. Because he was constantly bouncing between new foster homes, he was never able to build lasting friendships. This changed when the world ended, as he slowly built a strong friend group that not only relies on one another for survival, but genuinely enjoys being around one another every day. These relationships are vital to his survival and have ironically—given the broader apocalyptic circumstances—improved his life. However, they have also given Jack new problems to wrestle with, such as the possibility of loss. Throughout the novel Jack struggles with the tension that comes from having people he cares about and living in a world of constant threat and danger.
Jack fears that if he doesn’t protect them, his friends are going to die. There are numerous times when Jack tries to prevent his friends from taking on a dangerous role or even leaving the tree house at all. When he and Quint first hear the Shrieking and decide to investigate, Jack wants to go alone because “[he] can’t keep risking his friends all willy-nilly!” (85). Quint accuses Jack of trying to be a lone-wolf hero, but more importantly, points out that he wants to go and that “[he’s] in this world with [Jack]” (85). Quint’s response highlights the problem with Jack’s thinking. By becoming consumed with the idea that he must protect his friends, Jack is ignoring that they are individuals with thoughts, feelings, and desires of their own. Despite the world ending, Jack and friends largely enjoy themselves because the apocalypse comes with newfound freedoms and responsibilities, and they don’t want to just sit around the tree house all day. As Quint points out, he has to exist in this world too. It is crucial to the group that they are all given the opportunity to develop the skills and abilities necessary to survive.
The novel emphasizes the importance of teamwork and community. Post-apocalyptic fiction often focuses on how the unrelenting struggle for survival strips away any pretense of selflessness, kindness, or consideration for others. However, rather than exploring the darkest parts of humanity, The Last Kids on Earth and the Zombie Parade is more interested in how dire circumstances can bring people together. When Jack and Quint hear the Shrieking again one night, Jack still slips into being overprotective, but eventually realizes his error and wakes June and Dirk so they can come along too. This proves to be the right choice: In the final battle against Thrull, it takes the entire group—and the help of some Monsters—to defeat him. June, Quint, and Dirk make use of abilities they’ve developed over the course of the novel. It is clear that Jack could not have defeated Thrull on his own.
The Importance of Empathy
Jack struggles to understand his friends’ perspectives and their need for agency and control over their own lives. However, when it comes to many of the monsters he encounters throughout the novel, he demonstrates an uncanny ability to put himself in their shoes and understand—or at least empathize with—their thoughts, feelings, and the unique experiences they are going through. This is first suggested by his refusal to kill zombies because “[they] used to be people” and he only “[kills] the bad monsters” (105). The group also humanizes a zombie by naming it Alfred. Jack does not see zombies as monsters to be killed without second thought, and even ascribes them a level of personhood.
This is reiterated by the way that Jack treats Alfred with great care and respect. He is even willing to put himself in danger at the end of the novel to ensure Alfred isn’t devoured by the Tree of Entry. Given the apocalyptic circumstances and the existential threat that zombies pose, others may want to kill them to protect themselves. However, Jack never forgets that zombies used to be human, and more importantly, that the threat they pose is not malicious or intentional. These are people who suffered a tragic fate and are now acting mindlessly out of instinct.
Jack also feels genuine empathy for the Wormungulous, despite the fact that it poses a threat to his and his friends’ lives. He feels guilty about hurting it during their first encounter and puts himself at risk in order to help it. His decision to step outside of the cage that is keeping him safe to come to the Wormungulous’s aid is based purely on instinct and the feeling that it needed help and would not hurt him. His bravery—and more importantly, kindness—is rewarded when he gains a significant ally through this act.
Jack’s empathy for monsters stems from his own experience as an outsider. He has been judged and misunderstood, and was constantly uprooted and forced to adapt to a new environment after losing his home. He is able to see past the threat of the Wormungulous. He recognizes that it is attacking them because it is scared and confused, not because it is evil and deserves to die, which is also true of the zombies roaming Wakefield. He doesn’t jump to conclusions about monsters, but rather, understands that they are living beings and as such, shouldn’t automatically be regarded as a threat. This perspective is part of Jack’s broader optimism about the world. Despite the destruction and danger around him, he maintains hope that things can be better. His empathy for monsters also enables his survival. The bonds he forms with Wormungulous, Bardle, and his friends play a central role in defeating Thrull and keeping Rezzoch at bay.
The Power of Perspective
Jack’s ability to maintain a positive outlook and attitude no matter what he is facing enables him to lead and survive in the post-apocalyptic world. Despite the earth being full of monsters, losing nearly everyone he knows, and all social infrastructure collapsing, Jack remains optimistic about the future. He also finds ways to enjoy his new life—in many ways, more than his old one. While in the past he was an outsider, without family, Jack is now the leader of his group of friends. He also finds the joy in life. As he explains: “I learned that just by calling any random old chore a quest, you can make life a LOT more fun” (13).
Jack’s statement reveals the power of perspective. By managing the ways he views any given situation, he can make it more enjoyable. This provides insight into his behavior, like when he jokes in deathly serious situations or makes constant pop cultural references. His jokes are a way of coping with potentially traumatic experiences. Some of his pop cultural references reveal how he sees himself as a hero in an action movie, demonstrating the way that he has framed his understanding of his new reality. By viewing himself as a hero from one of his favorite movies or video games, the dangers and challenges of surviving in the Monster Apocalypse become fun obstacles to overcome rather than scary threats to endure.
However, Jack’s response to the Monster Apocalypse may be one of denial. Jack has experienced a lot of traumatic things since the start of the apocalypse whether he wants to admit it or not—his family left him behind, most of his classmates were turned into zombies, he has spent months surviving by himself, and he has been in several life-threatening battles with monsters from another dimension. About halfway through The Last Kids on Earth and the Zombie Parade, Jack demonstrates that there are certain things that he just doesn’t want to face—like the idea that there is some new, unknowable evil in town, and that there is an all-powerful arch-villain attempting to make its way to Earth. Rather than ruminate on these uncomfortable truths, Jack distracts himself by questing. Filling out Thrull’s bestiary nearly ends up helping Rezzoch make his way to earth, suggesting that this was not a healthy way for Jack to deal with his problems, and that avoidance is not always the best coping strategy.
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