The reason why the epidemic of 1918-19 came to be identified with Spain has to do with censorship during the First W. The most interesting elements are the attempts to understand the flu and how it jumps from species, in particular birds and pigs, to man, and why it is that some strains, such as that of 1918, which was the worst one yet, are much more serious than others. In this gripping narrative history, Laura Spinney traces the overlooked pandemic to reveal how the virus traveled across the globe, exposing mankinds. Pale Rider is not just an excavation but a reimagining of the past Guardian. The Spanish flu was not distinctly Spanish. From start to finish the book presents its arguments clearly and concisely and leaves the reader in no doubt of the great tragedy that was Spanish 'Flu.

In Pale Rider, Laura Spinney recounts the story of an overlooked pandemic. Pale Rider is an excellent and readable account of the pandemic that swept the world in 1918 and caused the deaths of so many millions of people. Some parts of the narrative seem to be just fillers and are only tangentially related to the account. And yet, in our popular conception it exists largely as a footnote to World War I.

A truly global disease, with only isolated pockets fortunate to escape the worst of its depredations – although this did include the substantial landmass of Australia. Global figures for those who died in the flu are unknown – but it certainly killed more than died in the First World War and possibly the Second War, combined. While the Great War did not create the flu, it provided ideal conditions for its dissemination. Spanish flu did not originate in Spain no one is absolutely sure where, but it seems probable that it came from China, the United States or France, amongst the deployed troops. How well does the author relate the content of. With the recent emergence of a particularly nasty strain of a flu virus, ostensibly from Australia, causing immense discomfort to many sufferers, this is an apposite time for a book on the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic. Non-Fiction Discussion Question for Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How It Changed the World.

Pale Rider: The Spanish Flu of 1918 and How It Changed the World

Pale rider the spanish flu of 1918