The Pandemic Century von Mark Honigsbaum

The most timely and informative history book you will read this year, tracing a century of pandemics, with a new chapter on COVID-19. Ever since the 1918 Spanish influenza pandemic, scientists have dreamed of preventing catastrophic outbreaks of infectious disease. Yet, despite a century of medical progress, viral and bacterial disasters continue to take us by surprise, inciting panic and dominating news cycles. A history of global contagion from the Spanish flu to Covid-19.

Mark Honigsbaum is a medical historian, journalist, and author of five books including The Pandemic Century: One Hundred Years of Panic, Hysteria, and Hubris and The Fever Trail: In Search of the Cure for Malaria. He hosts the podcast series, 'Going Viral: The Mother of all Pandemics', marking the centenary of the 1918 influenza pandemic. His TED-ED animation, `How Pandemics Spread¿, has been viewed more than 2.75 million times. He is a former chief reporter of the Observer and holds a PhD in medical history. He is currently a lecturer at City University, London.