Partially Devoured: How Night of the Living Dead Saved My Life and Changed the World
Published by Counterpoint, 2026. 313 pages.
By Daniel Kraus

Back in 2015, before I read Gunnar Hansen’s book Chain Saw Confidential, I had asked myself the question, “did we really need another book on this film?” And after reading it… indeed we did. Especially when it is coming from a person that was there through the brutal shooting of it. And now we have another book, on another epically famous horror film, George Romero’s Night of the Living Dead, but this time not written by someone directly involved. That little fact really doesn’t matter because within the 300+ pages of this book, you will learn more about Night of the Living Dead than you ever thought you could. About the movie, the people involved, and so much more. But author Kraus also shows us how and why this film was so important to him and why it made such an impact on his life. While me might not all go on to become professional writers, every fan will feel that same connection to film as he describes this one. So, no matter where our individual path in life takes us, we are the same.

When mentioning a variety of low-budget films in general, with real makeup effects and settings, Kraus writes, “The importance of art like this grows by the day. In a world where AI and CGI create seamless visual media, seeing those seams right where fallible human hands put them in everything – it’s proof of intent, of passion, of life itself.” That really hits home and I hope younger fans can understand that. The people involved in this little film believed in what they were doing. You have to remember, none of these people had a clue what this film was going to become over the next half a century! Kraus goes on to say, “Call it Don Quixote Disease. Or just call it the American spirit. It’s not the finished product that matters, it’s the chase of it. Night of the Living Dead is a literal and symbolic chase all the way through, and that’s why I love it.” I think that’s why a lot of us horror fans are as passionate about these as we are. We know there is something more than just cheap thrills.