Jam (novel)

Jam is a science-fiction post-apocalyptic young adult novel by British-Australian video-game critic Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw. It is his second published novel after Mogworld in 2010.

The concept for the novel can be seen in his weekly Zero Punctuation review of the survival horror game Dead Island where he says that people would not be able to cope if civilization ends in any other way than a zombie apocalypse.

The novel centers around a group of survivors in Brisbane, Australia after the city is covered with “carnivorous” strawberry jam that eats organic material.

Travis: The main protagonist of the novel, which is told through his perspective. Travis is an unemployed twenty-something who lives in the heart of Brisbane with his flat mates Tim and Frank. Travis doesn’t have much of a personality, willing to go along with everyone else’s plans rather than take any direction of his own, and many of his actions are entirely reactionary. He has a habit of “going off” whenever he witnesses someone’s death. He is also oblivious at times, often revealing important information and stating the obvious. Early in the disaster, Travis discovers a goliath bird eater tarantula, whom he adopts and names “Mary.” Though afraid at first, he soon grows emotionally attached to it, almost to the point he believes she’s talking to him towards the end of the novel.

Tim: Travis’ flat mate, who previously worked as a freelance musician. Unlike everybody else, Tim is actually excited about the jam-apocalypse. He revels in the prospect of rebuilding society, and mainly focuses on finding a settlement and becoming self-sustained, growing into a natural leadership role. However, he goes insane after it is revealed the Jam did not cover the entire world.

Angela: A girl who lives in Travis and Tim’s apartment, and had previously worked at Starbucks. She is a journalism student, who spends most of the novel carrying a camcorder, intending on documenting everything. She frequently challenges X over her lying, and believes the jam was released as part of a conspiracy that she intends to get to the bottom of.