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The Great Influenza

The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History

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The Great Influenza

By: John M. Barry
Narrated by: Scott Brick
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About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

The number one New York Times best seller.

In 1918, the world faced the deadliest pandemic in human history. What can the story of the so-called Spanish Flu teach us about the fight against present day crises and how to prepare for future outbreaks?

At the height of WWI, history's most lethal influenza virus erupted in an army camp in Kansas, moved east with American troops, then exploded, killing as many as 100 million people worldwide. It killed more people in 24 months than AIDS killed in 24 years, more in a year than the Black Death killed in a century. But this was not the Middle Ages, and 1918 marked the first collision of science and epidemic disease.

Magisterial in its breadth of perspective and depth of research, The Great Influenza is ultimately a tale of triumph amid tragedy, which provides us with a precise and sobering model as we confront the aftermath of Covid-19 and future pandemics looming on the horizon.

©2004 John M. Barry (P)2020 Penguin Audio Biological Sciences Contagious Diseases History & Commentary Medicine & Health Care Industry Military Physical Illness & Disease Science Medicine Thought-Provoking Health Imperialism Health Care War
All stars
Most relevant
Fascinating read post COVID. Still highly relevant in pulling apart the mechanisms of viral spread and the consequences of a variety of government responses. A little heavy on the male perspective, but given the date of publication, not unusual

thrilling read

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This book is brilliant and very thorough. With all this known in 2004 how can the governments of the world be so un-prepared for this covid-19 pandemic. It is also scary to think about how the USA transformed into an authoritarian regime as no-one could speak truth without being accused of being a traitor to the war effort. Again there are so many parallels to our covid-19 pandemic where an authoritarian regime withheld information. So sad we cannot learn from our past mistakes

This knowledge is available yet we are unprepared

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A book to listen to a number of times as so much information. Narration also excellent.

A deadly event that took the young during and after WW1. American medicine was still in its infancy but grew incredibly quickly producing brilliant minds and virus detectives, some who gave their lives trying to understand disease.

Highly recommended listen, especially after Covid 19.

Great Telling of the Influenza and So much more

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Now that the next great pandemic is here I am certainly glad that, for the most part, we seem to have learnt at least some lessons from 1918. That flu was definitely more scary than Covid however, despite the fact that we are yet to have the third wave ( although at the time of writing this I think it is exploding in China). This is an absolute must read on so many levels. The pure joy of history, the fascination of how far we have come in medical practice and sophistication during the 20th century (and yet how far we still have to go) and as a potential warning of the very many mistakes made during that previous pandemic. It is also an excellent read for anyone stupid enough to be an anti-vaxxer in this day and age and yet clever enough to be saved from their own stupidity. The story of how vaccines work due to their early development is a fascinating listen. The tragedy of the times was certainly underplayed during my lifetime, it's almost as if it has been fated to be expunged from history. The actual horror of those years cannot be stated too strongly. History will repeat itself and we need to remember how to deal with it.

SOBERING

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I really enjoyed this interesting book which has so much to say to us about our present pandemic. Although written before the present Coverd 19 pandemic, the cast of heroes and villains are familiar to us. The text itself is occasionally overstated and breathless; every scientist seems to be the most distinguished in his field, every laboratory at the top of its form, every crisis unpredictable and devastating. This is a minor qualification, however , and the overall effect is very positive. The writer makes a few concessions to non-scientific readers but this is a positive, I’m sure. Be prepared to learn a great deal more about viruses and research than you ever thought you wanted to know.

An Amazing Story Well Read

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