I was a bit nervous about reading Lawrence Wright’s “The End of October,” a novel about a flu pandemic, during a pandemic. However, I was intrigued about this book, released in June, that predicted 2020 so well.
Wright began his career as a journalist. He has written for
Texas Monthly and Rolling Stone and is currently a staff writer at The New
Yorker. His prose is definitely that of a reporter: clear, concise, and engaging.
In fact, I finished the book in just three sittings despite
its nearly 400 pages. I could have finished it in just two, but I had to make
myself put the book down around midnight. This is not bedtime reading.
The main character is Henry Parsons, an infectious diseases
expert with the CDC. He goes to Indonesia to investigate a particularly strange
outbreak at a refugee camp. Other experts have concluded that the outbreak is
shigella, a type of bacteria. However, what Henry finds at the camp is shocking,
and he begins his months-long search to identify the virus and a treatment.
However, it is too late for Henry to prevent a pandemic. He
has to use his wits to return home after he is trapped in Saudi Arabia and
hitches a ride back to the U.S. aboard a nuclear submarine.
Wright accurately predicts not only the spread of a novel
virus and the reactions of individuals and nations, he also predicts an
outbreak at the White House, and that the U.S.’s adversaries use the
opportunity to launch attacks on America.
Some readers have complained that the first half of the book
contains too much scientific information. However, I regard that as one of the
book’s strengths. Through Henry’s investigation, the reader learns about the
different types of influenza viruses and what their names mean, about important
scientists in the fight against viruses that have plagued humanity, and about
famous accidents in that research.
Wright’s book is a very compelling thriller. The characters
are interesting, and the plot is believable for the most part. Wright does jump
the shark with the “mad scientist” character who has learned to regenerate
extinct species.
Although I did have a couple of nightmares after reading
“The End of October,” I still enjoyed it tremendously, and I’m glad I read it,
if only because we have not suffered the millions of deaths and the complete
failure of society as did the people in the story.
Yet.
