The Pandemic Century

The Pandemic Century by Mark Honigsbaum is an incredibly informative history of pandemic break outs worldwide over the past 100 years, with a new, additional chapter concerning COVID19. This book feels as though it has never been more prevalent as we fight through another pandemic of epic proportions. It also makes us aware of what works and what doesn't, and I feel as though more people really need to see the history of pandemics.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an advance readers copy in exchange for an honest review.

In The Pandemic Century: A History of Global Contagion from the Spanish Flu to Covid-19, Mark Honigsbaum traces a century of pandemics from the 1918 Spanish influenza to SARS, Ebola and Zika, and a very recently added chapter on Covid19. 

This a well-written, detailed and informative book that has given me a lot of food for thought. Highly recommended to anyone interested in understanding more about the broader context of Covid19 and pandemics more generally.

Mark Honigsbaum's book is extremely timely. It covers in detail pandemics starting with the 'Spanish' flu outbreak in 1918 and continues through 100 years of mostly zoonotic disease outbreaks.  I learned so much from this book.  I had no idea that the symptoms of influenza can be so devastating.  The descriptions of conditions in the military camps in the USA are gruesome, as are those of the effects of Ebola on its victims.

I felt that the chapter on AIDS was too heavy on technical description for the non-scientist reader, but in general the writing was clear..

In the current days of COVID19 it is sobering to read how difficult the science of identifying viruses still is in the 21st century, despite the 20th being an era of extraordinary medical progress.  Add to this the reluctance of governments to acknowledge outbreaks and I am left with the feeling of living in a very dangerous world. The book leaves me hoping that the Next Big One does not come in my lifetime.