Why do disaster stories capture our attention? Tales of apocalypses, earthquakes, tsunamis, mass murder all grab us. What makes AMC’s The Walking Dead so popular? Is it the horror of zombies or the characters struggle to retain their humanity? Is it entertainment, or a way to express our fears over what is happening in our world?

Do the attacks by foreign and home-grown terrorists play a role? How did you react to the recent spate of shootings by police and citizens? Did the deaths at the hands of police make you feel anger? Did the shootings of law enforcement officers make you fearful?

I admit I’ve always been drawn to these types of stories. I like to read how people overcome their fears to become heroes. The best books have the characters learning how to survive. The worst ones are a recitation of skills or have experts in all fields suddenly gathered together in one place.

These books and short stories extract an emotional response from the reader. Is it because the novels are well written, or do they mirror what is going on in our world today?

What happened to freedom to practice religion? What happened to the creed America once lived by and is reflected in the Emma Lazarus poem The New Colossus? “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free...”

Where is tolerance and acceptance of other cultures, races and humanity?

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