However, he considered the book to be in the self-help genre, rather than humor, saying "I can't think of anything less funny than dying in a zombie attack.

"[5] Publishers Weekly called the book an "outrageous parody of a survival guide" which was amusing but "unnecessarily exhaustive".

[6] Pyramid described the book as akin to a "roleplaying game sourcebook", saying Brooks "uses a particular blend of dark humor and horror" and "treats the subject with such an earnest and serious tone".

[7] A promotional tie-in comic book, The Zombie Survival Guide: Recorded Attacks, was released on October 6, 2008.

[10] A film adaptation based on Brooks' follow-up novel World War Z, directed by Marc Forster and starring Brad Pitt, was released in 2013.