Product Description

Between August 1918 and March 1919 the Spanish influenza spread worldwide, claiming over 25 million lives, more people than those perished in the fighting of the First World War. It proved fatal to at least a half-million Americans. Yet, the Spanish flu pandemic is largely forgotten today. In this vivid narrative, Alfred W. Crosby recounts the course of the pandemic during the panic-stricken months of 1918 and 1919, measures its impact on American society, and probes the curious loss of national memory of this cataclysmic event. In a new edition, with a new preface discussing the recent outbreaks of diseases, including the Asian flu and the SARS epidemic, America's Forgotten Pandemic remains both prescient and relevant. Alfred W. Crosby is a Professor Emeritus in American Studies, History and Geography at the University of Texas at Austin, where he taught for over 20 years. His previous books include Throwing Fire (Cambrige, 2002), the Measure of Reality (Cambridge, 1997) and Ecological Imperialism (cambridge, 1986). Ecological Imperialism was the winner of the 1986 Phi Beta Kappa book prize. The Measure of Reality was chosen by the Los Angeles Times as one of the 100 most important books of 1997.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #203235 in Books
• Published on: 2003-07-21
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 352 pages

Review
"Crosby will retain his reputation as a senior statesman of the 1918 influenza epidemic, as one of the first to study it comprehensively..." Linda Bryder, The International History Review

"[This] is a definitive account of the 1918 influenza epidemic in the United States. Alfred Crosby has systematically covered the effect of influenza upon the armed forces, major cities, and American territories. Over and above this he has depicted the spread and impact of the disease over a good part of the world." Journal of the History of Medicine

"[This] is a fine, galloping account of the influenza pandemic that killed some 25 million people in less than a year. In some ways it was a page out of the Middle Ages bound in the twentieth century. No plague ever killed so many people in so short a time." Natural History

"[This] is a fine, galloping account of the influenza pandemic that killed some 25 million people in less than a year. In some ways it was a page out of the Middle Ages bound in the twentieth century. No plague ever killed so many people in so short a time." Natural History

"Thoroughly researched and rich in detail, Crosby's book carefully narrates the rise and fall of the global pandemic, especially as it affected the United States." Medical History

"Thoroughly researched and rich in detail, Crosby's book carefully narrates the rise and fall of the global pandemic, especially as it affected the United States." Medical History

"...fascinating..." New York Sun

Customer Reviews

not as good as "The Great Influenza"
Like another reviewer here, I'd say that unless you're looking for tables and statistics, you should get "The Great Influenza" by John Barry instead of this book. Also like that reviewer, this is not a knock on Crosby at all, but a tribute to Barry. Barry's book really is an incredible work by any standard. Compared to Crosby, it is simply richer and deeper, whether the 2 writers are addressing the same thing-- for example, both focused on Philadelphia, possibly the hardest hit city in the country-- or in the way Barry explains things that Crosby never addresses at all-- such as the political and scientific context, how viruses behave, immunology. Yet you certainly won't be disappointed if you buy this book and you're interested in the subject.

One thing you should NOT do is get any of the other books on influenza. Most of them are outright crap. None of the other books can compete with Crosby's, not to mention Barry's.

WHY FORGOTTEN?
Crosby's classic account of this pandemic begins in the spring of 1918 with the virus just getting started in American military training camps. He then discusses how it devastated Philadelphia and San Francisco, contrasting the two cities handling of the crisis. The rest of the book looks at how the flu affected the US army in France and how it impacted the Paris peace conference. Toward the end we get a fascinating but grisly description of how Alaskan native towns were destroyed by the disease.

Crosby focuses on the US here, and does not take a global perspective, as most books have. We learn nothing, for instance, about how over twelve million perished in India. But then Crosby is an American historian, and we gain something by limiting our focus.

Why is this disaster forgotten? Of course the war had much to do with it; people have trouble absorbing two calamities at the same time. But I also believe the public remained calm for a simple reason: the sickness was known to be flu. An unusual and deadly flu it was to be sure, but it is hard for many to be truly afraid of a disease that strikes every year and lasts a season. Most probably thought they would make it through until spring. For a half million in the states, this turned out to be a delusion.

Scholarly, yet easy to read
This book was written several decades back, yet is entirely relevant to today. The subject matter is the great flu pandemic of 1918 -- one of the worse mass die-offs in human history that somehow we seem to have collectively forgotten. Full of interesting statistics, the author describes the waves of the disease and the terrible mortality, especially among the young. I first heard of the pandemic many years ago when my great grandmother showed me family pictures. There was one particular picture, a beautiful young woman (her daughter), over which she wept as she described her and how quickly she died. I was surprised that I hadn't heard the story before, but my mother told me that no one talked about that time -- it was just too terrible to think about. I can also recall having the "Asian Flu" as a child. That was truly awful. You find it difficult to breath, you are delerious, you ache horribly. Now we find that there is possibly a new pandemic coming, if and when the Avian flu mutates. Be afraid. So read this well written book if you want to know what may happen.