A zombie-themed spoof on the “Chicken Soup for the Soul” books created by a UF alumnus has been pulled from Amazon.com due to trademark concerns.
“Chicken Soup for the Undead Soul” was published on the site Oct. 12 and removed Nov. 1.
The e-book includes a collection of stories that touch on zombie pregnancy, mummy love and self-esteem issues of the undead.
Jordan Alva, creator of the book, said most of the stories were intentionally left unfinished so that readers can write their own endings. In light of the recent suspension, those stories may never have an ending.
“Amazon emailed me and said that they’ve suspended book sales, and have done so because a third party has notified them that there may be some trademark concerns,” Alva said.
Alva said he is looking into alternative ways to distribute the book but hopes to resolve the issue.
“I plan right now on continuing on the path that I’m on,” Alva said, “until I’m convinced that I am actually doing something that’s wrong.”
Alva said he has always been interested in donating proceeds of the book to a charity that encourages writing among students. The book may become available online for free with a requested donation for this cause.
“It’s not about money; it’s about having fun and getting people to write,” Alva said.
Emily Olson, a contributing author to the book, said she supported Alva’s idea of making the book available with a donation to a charity.
“If it gets people writing more and thinking more creatively, that’s something that I could easily get behind, no matter what motivates it,” she said.
A version of this story ran on page 5 on 11/8/2013 under the headline "UF grad’s Chicken Soup zombie book pulled from Amazon"
