"One of the most experienced reporters in public health takes a hard look at how the world has dealt with epidemics, often challenging prevailing approachesand not without controversy. This is must reading for preparing us better for the next, unavoidable, epidemic."
Peter Piot, MD, co-discoverer of Ebola and first executive director of UNAIDS "The Wisdom of Plagues is one of the most enlightening books on public health Ive ever read. Written by one of the nations best science reporters, it not only documents the governmental response (and lack thereof) to Covid-19, but also other major global health crises including AIDS, Ebola, and SARS. McNeil informs, challenges, and provokes with meticulous research and exceptional prose."
Leana Wen MD, former Baltimore health commissioner "Theres never been a disease and health journalist quite like Donald McNeil, and this book does not disappoint. The gold standard for journalists covering pandemics."
Peter Hotez MD, founding dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at the Baylor College of Medicine "The Wisdom of Plagues reads like a thriller. Riveting pandemic history is followed by a wide-reaching vision of how to stave off future pandemics. McNeils voice is clear and blunt: Mankind has the means to save itself but not the political will."
Michele Barry, MD, director of the Stanford University Center for Innovation in Global Health "An urgent, personal book from an award-winning global health journalist whose reporting spans AIDS to Zika to COVID. After weaving equal parts of medical history, insight, and compassion, McNeil concludes with bold prescriptions that can truly save lives. I view The Wisdom of Plagues as required reading for anyone remotely concerned about major infectious threats in a future that is far from certain."
Claire Panosian Dunavan, MD, past-president of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene "As a global maternal health advocate, I have long followed Donald McNeils coverage. His work highlighting HIV and the ongoing impact of AIDS on women and girls is particularly to be admired."
Christy Turlington Burns, founder of Every Mother Counts "A brilliant and vital book. We ignore Donald G. McNeil Jr. at our peril. Bravo!"
Howard Markel, MD, medical historian, University of Michigan "Unravels the stories, emotions, distrust, beliefs, and rumors that can disrupt the rollout of even the best-laid pandemic plans if they havent thought through the human factors so eloquently and passionately described in this exceptional book."
Heidi Larson, founder of the Vaccine Confidence Project "When plagues arise, what saves the most lives? Donald G. McNeil Jr. provides a searching look for the answers, challenging dogmas and conventional authorities. A provocative must-read for both an informed public and public health professionals."
William Schaffner, MD, professor of preventive medicine at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine "This is a well-researched book by an engaging science journalist who covered global health for the New York Times for twenty-five years. The Wisdom of Plagues is a must read on the COVID pandemic, providing a compelling and well-told history and importantly, lessons, warnings, and hope for the future of infectious diseases."
Monica Gandhi MD, professor of medicine and infectious diseases at University of California, San Francisco