The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History

It's rare that I bounce off a book so hard that I don't finish the first chapter, and even rarer that I then write up something about it. But while alarm bells were set ringing fairly early on by an account of a pandemic which showed not just ignorance but active disdain for the history of medicine before the nineteenth century, by John M. Barry's seeming inclination towards the Great Man view of things, and by his signalling that women would be sidelined in The Great Influenza, it was his description of the Lakota, Cheyenne and Arapaho as "primitive savages" that had me abandoning this on page 12. It is appalling that a major publishing house would print something like that in the twenty-first century.

Considering the current state of the world, this book was eerie. Recounting how the 1918 pandemic emerged and spread, this book is a work of history, but by changing a few names it could also be an in-depth report on current events. The worst part was the conclusion, in which the author discusses how prepared the world is for the spread of a similar pandemic. I had to double-check the publication date, because it's somewhat frightening how well understood and readily apparent the problems which have played out in 2020 were years previously. Excellent reading, especially if one is interested in the history of pandemics and for understanding how little humans appear to learn from them.

This was a fun book (I know that sounds wrong given the topic) about the influenza outbreak that happened at the end of WWI. I knew that it had happened, but I really didn't know how hard the United States was hit or that it likely started here. I was under the impression it took place mainly in Europe so the whole book was basically news to me.

I appreciated that Barry took the time to give a little background on the history of medicine in America and also spent a lot of time on medical research about and around influenza. I though he got a little overly sensational at times, especially when discussing possible current day epidemics. That's not to say I think it couldn't happen; I just thought his tone was a little repetitive and over show more the top.

All in all I enjoyed reading this and learned quite a bit both about the history of medicine and the social history of the outbreak. It's definitely a topic that I hope our government and medical facilities have contemplated and done some planning for in terms of future outbreaks. show less

The Greatest Killer in History

Humankind likes to think it is in control and rests comfortable in that thought. When something unknown and uncontrollable strikes, panic ensues. Just that happened when influenza struck the world in 1918, a world already weary of the first total world war, a war that led to a near suspension of democracy in the United States as Woodrow Wilson and his administration prepared to enter the conflict. John Barry not only tells the story of a disease raging rampant across the U.S. and the entire world but how humankind’s own deadly squabbling and compulsion to control, restrict, and distort information contributed to worldwide panic and, probably, millions of unnecessary deaths. His is at once a tale of show more terror, inspiration, and caution. It’s one that readers should pay particular heed to in light of the demoralizing beating truth and honesty are taking today in American society.

To truly appreciate the 1918 influenza, readers need an understanding of biology, chemistry, public health practices, medical practices, and the political and social milieu of the period. While a lot to ask, what makes Barry’s history so brilliant is how he weaves all these disciplines into the story to the point where you acquire a basic working knowledge of virology and bacteriology, in addition to a greater appreciation of modern medical science.

Barry begins with the state of medical practice and education and scientific research a century before the great influenza attack. Indeed, what a sorry state it was with no standards in sight. Over time, though, and with great skill and insight, dedicated, curious, and exacting people wrought the kind of modern medical world familiar to us today. It arrived just in time to face off with the influenza plague. What will strike you in particular is just how small the research community was, concentrated in a few institutions in the U.S., especially Johns Hopkins and the Rockefeller Institute (now Rockefeller University) and a few men and a woman, among them William Welch, Simon Flexner, Oswald Avery, William Park, Anna Williams, and a handful of others. Little known today, except to those involved in medicine and research, you learn just what giants they were and how they contributed a modern life we take for granted today.

You can’t fathom influenza without understanding something of virology and bacteriology. Barry does an excellent job of explaining and illustrating how viruses and bacteria work and how researchers isolate these organisms and devise methods for combatting them. Concomitant with this knowledge is an understanding of public health policy and techniques, which Barry threads throughout the story.

In many ways, the early part of the 20th century proved a perfect breeding ground and killing field for influenza as the Great War caused great concentrations of soldiers in camps, ports, ships, and battlefields in less than healthful conditions. As readers will learn, the times accounted for an accelerated dissemination of the influenza virus and its mutations. What also contributed to the disease, especially its capacity to strike raw terror into the hearts of people so overpowering and crippling that sister would not help sister or brother brother, is that the American government, from Washington straight down to local districts, lied to the American people about the severity and cause of the health crisis, and enlisted the media of the day to participate, all in the name of patriotism and the drive to focus and marshal resources on entering and fighting the Great War. In other words, something we find ourselves confronted with again, manipulation of our free press. Along with from 50 to 100 million deaths, two other casualties of the Great Influenza were Truth and Trust.

If you have never read this book, there’s never been a better or more important to change that. Needless to say, highly recommended. show less

Shortly after the COVID pandemic began, I heard about this book. I finally read it in audiobook format narrated by Scott Brick and found it haunting. As other reviewers have said, the book tells a much broader history than the influenza pandemic. Instead, you will discover the long history of medicine and the rise of scientific medicine which only arrived in the USA around 1900.

I've studied history in detail for years. Yet, this book stood out almost uniquely for how it reflects 2020-2021 pandemic concerns. In particular, the author's closing advice at the end of the book was haunting. There were reasonable recommendations presented in the book in 2004 that could have significantly reduced the likelihood and impact of pandemics. I only show more hope the world learns better lessons from today's pandemic.

I also enjoyed how the book explains the nature of knowledge, especially as it relates to medicine and biology. When a crisis puts incredible pressure on researchers to "deliver a cure" fast, is it reasonable to cut corners?

One minor complaint relates to style... The author uses some variation of the express "influenza, only influenza" over and over and over again. The point is fair - people in 1918 consistently downplayed the significance of the pandemic because it was "just influenza." Yet the constant repetition of this phrasing throughout the book felt like overkill. show less

Because of the grave state of the world right now, I decided I needed to know more about the 1918 Influenza pandemic. This book came highly recommended and was as daunting and informative as foretold. The author pretty much covers the entire history of medicine and research development in the United States, then includes how viruses exist, spread, and mutate. Since I was only looking for the facts about how the pandemic itself progressed, I thought this information would bore me, but oh contraire! I found myself glued to each page and engrossed in every detail. John M. Barry has done exhaustive research on the subject, and I now have a well-rounded understanding of what we are currently facing. You wouldn't think that a book written in show more 2005 could paint a picture of our future so accurately, and yet, here we are. In 1918 the American people's fight for their lives in the pandemic was hampered by the first world war and a government that withheld vital information that could have saved lives. I would have hoped in hindsight that we'd learned from that horrific experience and would be better equipped to cope with one now, but nothing seems to be further from the truth. I'm now more afraid than ever that since our pandemic has chosen to rear its ugly head in the middle of a volatile election year, we may be in for the same treatment from our leaders.

At the very end of this book, the author quotes Abraham Lincoln—"A leader must make whatever horror exists concrete. Only then will people be able to break it apart." Truer words were never spoken. show less

The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History by John M. Barry earned its reputation as an authoritative book about one of the world's great catastrophes of all times, the 1918-20 Spanish Flu pandemic. For reasons that are obvious it is quite timely now.

The Spanish Flu has been overshadowed in history by the violent end to WW I, then known as The Great War. WW I upended the long-prevailing history of Europe, ending all of its great monarchies and empires save the British Empire. The Spanish Flu, in parallel fashion but for more temporarily upended life in the U.S.

Similar to the current Covid-19 pandemic, the disease sewed panic. The author suggests that the panic was fueled by the efforts of the various governments show more to minimize it. I think the author's hypothesis is well-reasoned and strongly researched. Also, in light of the reaction to the novel Coronavirus the level of media and government attention has been, at best, a mixed blessing.

Turning from my own historical analysis to the book, it was gripping. I read the 461 pages in about twelve days. Some of the other reviewers of the books have justifiable quibbles. The prevailing one is weak editing. It was too repetitive. The literary device of repeating the last words of a previous sentence was overused. My own criticism is that the book was too often written out of chronological order. This may have been needed to give faithful mini-biographies of leading scientists and other players.

That is why I am giving the book a "four" rather than "five" on Goodreads. I highly recommend it; but beware, certain stretches may make a calm sleep afterwards difficult. show less