Books like World War Z that show a fictional apocalypse and what it’s like living through it?

I really enjoyed the anthology on this topic called Wastelands, edited by Joseph Adams. Has some big names in it, like George R.R. Martin, Corey Doctorow, and Octavia E. Butler.

You get a lot of different perspectives and stories in one book.

Mira Grant’s Newsflesh

Stephen King’s The Stand is (somewhat) similar, you’re in the thick of the apocalypse during 1/3 or half of the book (don’t remember) and then the story goes to the development of a new society and some conflict.

Ling Ma’s Severance is a bit unconventionnal half of the content of the book are some kind of the author’s memoirs from childhood in china to life in the US and the other half is about a global pandemic that wipes out society for good. It’s been my favorite book since I read it, but it is not action-packed-pew-pew-we’reallgonnadiiiiie

ETA : if you haven’t read the book Contagion, I’d advise to keep it that way.

I’ll go a different direction with this one, more in the silly direction. It’s still 100% what you’re requesting, but it’s also a slapstick comedy style apocalypse kinda along the lines of like, Sharknado.

*Jam* by Yahtzee Croshaw. One morning citizens of Brisbane, Australia wake up to discover the entire city flooded in a 3 foot layer of man-eating jam. That’s no meaningful spoiler, it’s literally described in the very first sentence of the book.

Absolutely hilarious and while it IS silly, I could completely see people reacting exactly the way they do throughout that book.

Devolution by Max Brooks. It’s a small scale apocalypse, but I thought it was well done.