The Wisdom of Plagues: Lessons from 25 Years of Covering Pandemics

by Donald G. McNeil

Award-winning New York Times reporter Donald G. McNeil, Jr. reflects on twenty-five years of covering pandemics—how governments react to them, how the media covers them, how they are exploited, and what we can do to prepare for the next one.

For millions of Americans, Donald McNeil was a comforting voice when the COVID-19 pandemic broke out. He was a regular reporter on The New York Times’s popular podcast The Daily and told listeners early on to prepare for the worst. He’d covered public health for twenty-five years and quickly realized that an obscure virus in Wuhan, China, was destined to grow into a global pandemic rivaling the 1918 Spanish flu. Because of his clear advice, a generation of Times readers knew the risk was real but that they might be spared by taking the right precautions. Because of his prescient work, The New York Times won the 2021 Pulitzer Gold Medal for Public Service.

The Wisdom of Plagues is his account of what he learned over a quarter-century of reporting in over sixty countries. Many science reporters understand the basics of diseases—how a virus works, for example, or what goes into making a vaccine. But very few understand the psychology of how small outbreaks turn into pandemics, why people refuse to believe they’re at risk, or why they reject protective measures like quarantine or vaccines. The COVID-19 pandemic was the story McNeil had trained his whole life to cover. His expertise and breadth of sources let him make many accurate predictions in 2020 about the course that a deadly new virus would take and how different countries would respond.

By the time McNeil wrote his last New York Times stories, he had not lost his compassion—but he had grown far more stone-hearted about how governments should react. He had witnessed enough disasters and read enough history to realize that while every epidemic is different, failure was the one constant. Small case-clusters ballooned into catastrophe because weak leaders became mired in denial. Citizens refused to make even minor sacrifices for the common good. They were encouraged in that by money-hungry entrepreneurs and power-hungry populists. Science was ignored, obvious truths were denied, and the innocent too often died. In The Wisdom of Plagues, McNeil offers tough, prescriptive advice on what we can do to improve global health and be better prepared for the inevitable next pandemic.

Genres: Audiobook, Science

Audiobook

Published January 9, 2024

About the author

Donald G. McNeil Jr. is a science reporter covering plagues and pestilences for the New York Times, where he began work as a copy boy in 1976. He is a former Africa correspondent and has reported from fifty-five countries.

Reviews

[Mac · Rating 4 out of 5]

Buy.

Insightful, critically well-informed, and judgemental in all the right places, McNeil is at his best. His personality, which his regular readers know well, shines here. And like any good and critical writer should do, he offers some practical solutions to the endemic problems he identifies.

[Jo Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Front Row Seat at the Pandemic

Donald G. McNeil had the privilege and torment of covering the COVID pandemic as a spot story for the New York Times in the hotspot that was New York City and around the world, As it expanded before incredulous eyes, he drew on broad experience covering HIV, Ebola, and other terrible plagues. This marvelous book describes his experiences and asks the tough questions. What should we have done differently to save lives? What can we do next time? A must read.

[Celia Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although it deals with such a grim topic, this is a fantastic book. Very well written and researched. The writer has a gift for making the science of pandemics accessible and easy to comprehend. I really admire the way he offered policy prescriptions at the end. I have recommended this book to several friends already and I will continue to do so. I learned a lot and was entertained while reading it. Excellent work of non-fiction.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to @netgalley and @Simon&Schuster for an arc in exchange for an honest (late) review.
This book is an insightful view of the last 25 years of pandemics from Donald McNeil's perspective while he was a regular reporter on The New York Times’s popular podcast The Daily. Because of his prescient work, The New York Times won the 2021 Pulitzer Gold Medal for Public Service.

I took a long time reading this because it forced me to confront my ptsd from 2020 and moving forward. We all had different versions of the same story, I was forced to see how I was as this information came out. However, I am better for reading this. Learning how the US government handles information like Covid, AIDS, Monkey Pox etc while understanding other cultural moments to consider was well layered by McNeil.

I only rated this a 3.5/5 (rounded to 4) because its nonfiction and hesitated even rating it. I did give it a rating though because there are so many comments, quotes, facts, and perspectives that are well done in this book. It is not supposed to be preachy but also tries to add a call to action through out. How can we prepare for the next pandemic (and why they will never end) as a community, are wonderful points posed for ongoing discussion.

[Margaret Heller · Rating 4 out of 5]

I knew that I wanted from this book was the author's personality more than the content--it's a career retrospective more than a history of disease, but I learned a few helpful things about recent disease outbreaks and a stern reminder the direction we're headed is bad.

[Rhonda Evans · Rating 4 out of 5]

Science facts

Science facts
The author backed up his theory with science, not hearsay and wild conspiracy theories. I agreed with everything he said.

[Ian · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5/5 Rounding up because the author reminds me of my dad.

[Ron Nurmi · Rating 4 out of 5]

A science writer at the NY Times writes about his 25 years covering pandemics. I found the book somewhat disorganized as he often covered topics many times instead of all at once, but that is how he and others experienced it so it is ok.

He discusses what can be done to prevent disease or problems from becoming a pandemic, but it appears the U.S. lacks the willpower to follow through.

A good summary of pandemics in the last 25 years.