Nonfiction Book Reviews

The Great Influenza: The Epic Story of the Deadliest Plague In History by John M. Barry

Viking Books, February 2004
Hardcover, 546 pages
ISBN: 0670894737
Ordering information:
Amazon.com


The Great Influenza: The Epic Story of the Deadliest Plague In History
by John M. Barry The recent SARS, influenza and bird flu outbreaks led to a few news stories reminding people of the incredible and deadly influenza outbreak of 1918. Even with these recent news reminders, few people are aware of how violent the disease was and how vulnerable the killer epidemic made people feel across our entire world. It started with soldiers, killing thousands and thousands of individual soldiers at bases in the United States. Doctors were completely unable to stop or slow its spread; the killer flu eventually traveled to the general population and worked its way from East to West across the United States. The influenza spread so fast that hospitals and morgues were quickly overrun. People were often forced to live with the dead bodies of family members because there were so many dead and dying that the health system and city morgues were completely overwhelmed. Many health workers were also sick and dying themselves. Coffins quickly became unavailable and bodies were stacked up on porches and next to houses. Symptoms of the disease were terrifying and violent: incredible pain, blood pouring from noses and eyes, intense fever, headache, weakness, body aches and delirium. People often died after gasping for breath for hours trying to clear a red, frothy liquid from their lungs. Mayors in cities lied to their citizens and said the plague would not come. But it came and even during the epidemic many newspapers reported that there was no cause for alarm or told people the virus had peaked when it had not. In 1918, influenza was a killing machine that raged from coast to coast, killing over 600,000 Americans. In October, 1918 influenza killed 195,000 Americans in a single month. Estimates for those killed by the disease worldwide range from 50 to 100 million. Today, we have the CDC and the WHO, which provide invaluable monitoring of emerging diseases. These are great steps but even so, disease experts insist the next outbreak is not a matter of if, but when.

John Barry has done an incredible job of not only accounting for the horrible and tragic occurrences during the plague, but also the triumphs and survival of humanity. Barry describes the time's warlike political environment under President Woodrow Wilson and how the sending of men off to war actually helped spread the disease around the globe. Soldiers would often die on ships before reaching their destinations. Barry also details the incredible advances that had been made in science leading up to the plague and gives biological insight into diseases, especially influenza. Despite these advances, mankind was completely unprepared for the deadly outbreak. There are so many fascinating details about the outbreak, as it affected soldiers, cities, doctors, families and individuals, that readers will find new anecdotes and information from start to finish. This book is a great read for anyone interested in politics or medicine, or who is interested in how America and the world survived its toughest year. The Great Influenza is an incredible story that must never be forgotten.

--Greg Knollenberg


Ten Days to D-Day by David Stafford

Little, Brown, June, 2004
Hardcover, 377 pages
ISBN: 0316605611
Ordering information:
Amazon.com


Ten Days to D-Day
 by David Stafford In this 60th anniversary year after the D-Day invasion of Normandy beaches at the end of World War II, it behooves us to reflect on the courageous actions of the Allied forces which brought about an end to the war in Europe. Former diplomat and project director at the Centre for Second World War Studies at the University of Edinburgh, David Stafford presents a fascinating account of the lead up to D-Day. Using an exciting narrative style which is more usually found in a good spy thriller, Stafford brings to life characters both famous and forgotten to show how the famous invasion was planned and executed. Based upon actual letters, diaries and official records, Ten Days to D-Day provides glimpses of the real personalities of the day: from Hitler's obsession with his health and the strange drugs he insisted on taking to Churchill's fury at de Gaulle, to the French Resistance workers who operated a clandestine network that was invaluable to the war effort. Stafford moves effortlessly from the big picture to the individual stories of real people who lived during that time to create an indispensable account of one of history's most important events.


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