Date Published: 09-15-2026
Publisher: Oculus Print
ZOMBIE ZOO is Book 1 in a five-book middle grade adventure series for readers ages 8-13, blending paranormal mystery, zombies, unlikely friendship, and STEAM-powered problem-solving.
To find a cure, Felix must team up with Ninja, a shadow-dwelling orphan who trusts her instincts and never backs down. Intense and razor-sharp, she notices what others overlook and lives up to her name as the island's most mysterious sleuth. With their eccentric mentor Doc Brunne compromised and the town's water supply contaminated by a glowing bioluminescent substance, the two mismatched investigators must combine scientific observation with sharp intuition to stop the outbreak before their island home is devoured.
Featuring diverse protagonists, quirky humor, spooky-but-fun scares, and strong female and male leads. ZOMBIE ZOO is ideal for reluctant readers and fans of Max Brallier's The Last Kids on Earth, B.B. Alston's Amari and the Night Brothers, and Goosebumps. Comprehensive educator resources-including discussion guides, vocabulary lists, STEAM extension activities, and printable maps-support classroom use, library programming, book clubs, and make this title ideal for cross-curricular lessons bridging ELA, STEAM, and SEL.
Interview with Melanie Abed
Author of Zombie Zoo
Hi Nancy, thanks for interviewing me on The Avid Reader Blog!
You are most welcome! Thanks for visiting with us today!
Could you tell us about any research trips you took for this story? Which places did you visit, and what made them essential to your writing?
Funny you should ask. I never really took trips specifically for research, but I have been lucky to travel around the world, and it's through these travels that I've discovered weird and wonderful things that have found their way into the pages of my books.
For one scene, I had a bunch of characters arriving from different locations, so I decided to draw from real-life experiences. I used out-of-the-way places I'd actually traversed—that way, I could write the tactile experience with more authority and authenticity.
For example, when I visited French Polynesia, I was inspired by these trees that grow in brackish water. They were so cool—they had these long legs that dipped into the water, almost like they were walking on and in it. Those trees featured in Book 2 of my Anni Moon series, which I haven't published yet.
In Book 1 of the same series, the main characters Anni and Lexi end up in Kensington Gardens, where I visited the Orangery. I chose the Orangery because the setting—a garden tea shop with pastries—set the stage for a quiet, peaceful moment that was about to shift. The conveniently styled hedges made for perfect hiding spots, ideal for my staged impromptu meeting in that scene.
In Book 3 of the same series, I wrote about a major meet-up scene that acts as a kind of portal, linking my Anni Moon series with my Felix & Ninja series. In it, several characters travel from different places I've been, such as Cape Town, South Africa; northern Hokkaido, Japan; Italy; and Greece.
So, although I don't travel specifically for research, I find that for me, it's much more about absorption. I collect moments, light, surroundings, and strange details, and eventually, these things find their way into my stories.
What research (history, mythology, science) goes into your world-building?
Great question, and the honest answer is: more than readers might expect for a middle-grade adventure.
Science: Bioluminescence & Chemistry
In Zombie Zoo, there's a fair bit of Felix taking notes in his field guide. He explores the things most naturalists would observe: biology-related details, sketching plants and animals, making notes. I started there, but as I wrote more, I realized my science needed to hold up, even in a paranormal genre. So I made sure Felix actually followed the scientific method—not just referenced it, but used it.
Here's a fun one: the mysterious green goo is inspired by real-life bioluminescent organisms called Noctiluca. But you won't believe this—I made these creatures up before I knew they existed. I nearly fell off my chair when I realized I'd basically named them what they're actually called in real life. My fictional "Noctiluna" and the real Noctiluca scintillans were apparently destined to meet.
Then at the end of the book, there's a fun bit of chemistry. I had to understand how acids and bases really work, and how I could make dark chocolate—specifically cocoa butter and cocoa powder—part of the cure. Figuring out how to turn a chemical reaction into a chocolate geyser was ridiculously fun. It also opens the door to acid-base lessons at home or in the classroom, and for hands-on fun, parents can make slime with their kids to recreate the nefarious green goo.
Cartography & History
Doc Brunne is a cartographer-scientist, so I had to dive into real mapmaking traditions to make him feel authentic. Felix's detailed observations and tree-fort maps became a natural extension of that —a blend of creativity, measurement, and observation of the natural world. There's also a TON of made-up history baked into Tub itself, but I can only share a little at a time due to pacing. Hopefully readers will get a fuller picture by the time Book 5 is complete. What I can tell you is this: Tub is a weird place. A cool place, but a weird place. And Tub is part of a larger origin story, one that the readers will be rewarded for following.
Mythology & Language
I strayed away from the whole zombies-and-brain-eating stuff. That's been done. Besides, this book is meant to be a little spooky, but more importantly, I do this for the humor. The mythology in Zombie Zoo—the Noctiluna, the hive mind, the transformation—is entirely my own. I wanted to give the paranormal a fresh, weird twist.
I also love etymology, so every name in the series is built with intention. Tub, Spinachi, Bloomnesia, Wayward Amok—none of them are random. Each one is a little linguistic breadcrumb, and readers who love word origins will find layers hiding in plain sight. Which is why I always ask readers this: do you like finding treasure inside a story? Not the plot kind — the tiny kind. The word that means something extra. The name that's a joke. The detail that quietly matters three books later. If that's you, come find us. Sign up for the newsletter, send questions, send art. We're collecting reader discoveries and building a spot on the website to celebrate them.
STEAM/STEM
I never set out to write an "educational" book. But because I love gardening and grew up enjoying science, those interests naturally flowed into the story through Felix. Once I stepped back, I realized Zombie Zoo is full of story elements that can serve as launching pads for real discussion and hands-on activity: biology, chemistry, cartography, the scientific method, or even Latin word origins.
Felix and Ninja model two very different ways of observing the world, data and instinct, both of which ultimately allow the reader to arrive at the same conclusions. I like to think of my quirky story elements as doorways to curiosity. Zombie Zoo is a full STEAM playground disguised as a zombie adventure—but the adventure and fun always come first.
About the Author
Instagram: @byMelanieAbed
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