Plague Wars: The True Story of Biological Warfare

by Tom Mangold, Jeff Goldberg

Biological terrorism is widely acknowledged to be inevitable. In the former Soviet Union the military has perfected smallpox, anthrax and Plague as biological warheads on intercontinental missiles that can reach London, New York and Los Angeles. In South Africa and Zimbabwe, biological weapons have already been used to kill innocent victims.

Genres: History, Science, Nonfiction, Military History, Military Fiction, Terrorism

402 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

Reviews

[Francesca · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not at all hard enough on the genocidal war criminals they interviewed, the authors of this book have written a good summary of bioweapons history but have let the evil men who develop these weapons for commercial gain or their own war mongering get off far too lightly.

There are no words strong enough to condemn some of the programmes discussed (especially those focusing on ethnic cleansing through genetically engineered diseases developed to target specific races) but it felt like these authors barely even tried.

Plus, I don’t care if it was written in 1999, the way they over describe the looks of the highly qualified female experts and activists made my toes curl. Some of the words used throughout the book are not at all okay and I doubt were acceptable even when it was published

Tried something new in a new genre with this one but it’s not paid off at all, a shame really cause could’ve been a good book without the above

[Joanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great, mostly-objective summary of biological warfare.

[Jessica Berumen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good history of biological warfare, but a tad politically slanted at times

[Keith Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bio warfare worldwide, from pox infected blankets, to the Japanese army in Manchuria, to Dr. Wooter Basson, and Project Coast in Apartheid South Africa. Most of the book however is about the massive and secret program called Biopreparat that the Soviets operated long after they signed a Chemical and Biological Weapons ban treaty. Indeed it continued until the collapse of the USSR.

[Sakina (Y.L.) Angel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Had this for years and tried a few times to read it, this time I finally dedicated a good chunk of time to the book and it paid off! Really enjoyed the writing, despite the strong Western bias. The narrative was accessible and tense, a real page turner. Fascinating whirlwind tour of modern history with spotlights on five nations.

[Virtue · Rating 1 out of 5]

Garbage! This type of books mislead public and eventually paved the road for the War in Iraq. People who write this type of books are not necessarily liars. They are just quickly buying prevailing trivial misconceptions, then amplify them and re-sell them with profit.

[Andrew Harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Grim but compelling reading.
Dr Ishii from Japan makes Mengele look like a saint.
Not a book for easy bedtime reading due to the subject matter.

[Mikael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although i read this as a primer on WMDs during cold war studies the book works as a warning about weaponised diseases as seen by the anthrax attacks.

[Scuppers · Rating 2 out of 5]

Same material's better covered elsewhere.

[George Dimitrov · Rating 1 out of 5]

this book left in me the feeling that I am wasting my time. Another attempt to shock the public and make some money.

[Nicolette · Rating 2 out of 5]

Blurg.

The first 250 pages of this was a wonderfully-written history. Then 1972 happened, and South Africa, Iraq, and the USSR were bad and everyone else was good. The End.

[Meg]

I'm putting this book aside - the descriptions of experiments on live subjects in the early chapters were just too icky. Quitting now before I have nightmares!