After the Apocalypse by Maureen F. McHugh

So after reading the recommendation of this book in Fantasy & Science Fiction magazine, I decided to give After the Apocalypse a try.  It was well worth it.

This series of short stories all feature an apocalypse theme.  My two favorites were "The Naturalist" in which prisoners are released into a zombie-infested wasteland, or more correctly speaking a zombie nature refuge, and one of the prisoners sets out to learn as much as he can about these creatures, and "After the Apocalpyse," a tale in which America has been crushed by economic collapse, a massive crime wave, and the complete destruction of its basic infrastructure, and refugees flee the cities and head to Canada, and they hope, a return to the life they used to know.

Not all of the stories deal with apocalypse on this scale.  Some deal with a more personal apocalypse, the end of one way of life and the beginning of something new and unknown.

McHugh is a really strong writer, and she does a marvelous job creating characters that are interesting (even the cold blooded killers are fascinating), and stories that are enjoyable to read.  I definitely want to check out more of her work.