The First Shots: The Epic Rivalries and Heroic Science Behind the Race to the Coronavirus Vaccine

by Brendan Borrell

The full inside story of the high-stakes, global race for the lifesaving vaccine to end the pandemic

Heroic science. Chaotic politics. Billionaire entrepreneurs. Award-winning journalist Brendan Borrell brings the defining story of our times alive through compulsively readable, first-time reporting on the players leading the fight against a vicious virus.  The First Shots , soon to be the subject of an HBO limited series with superstar director and producer Adam McKay ( Succession, Vice, The Big Short ), draws on exclusive, high-level access to weave together the intense vaccine-race conflicts among hard-driving, heroic scientists and the epic rivalries among Washington power players that shaped 18 months of fear, resolve, and triumph.

From infectious disease expert Michael Callahan, an American doctor secretly on the ground in Wuhan in January 2020 to gauge the terrifying ravages of Disease X; to Robert (Dr. Bob) Kadlec, one of Operation Warp Speed’s architects, whose audacious plans for the American people run straight into the buzz saw of the Trump White House factions; to Stéphane Bancel of upstart Moderna Therapeutics going toe-to-toe with pharma behemoth Pfizer,  The First Shots  lays bare, in a way we have not seen, the full stunning story behind the medical science “moon shot” of our lifetimes.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, History, Politics, Health, Biology

320 pages, Hardcover

First published October 26, 2021

About the author

Brendan Borrell is an award-winning journalist and the author of The First Shots: The Epic Rivalries and the Heroic Science Behind the Race to the Coronavirus Vaccine, which tells the inside story of Operation Warp Speed.

Over the last fifteen years, Brendan's essays and reporting have appeared in dozens of magazines and newspapers, including The Atlantic, Bloomberg Businessweek, National Geographic, and the New York Times. He has tracked down the Canadian maple syrup thieves, penetrated the secretive world of British mole catchers, and come face-to-face with the most powerful man in parrot-collecting. As a correspondent for Outside magazine, he searched for a whimsical French adventurer who went missing in Alaska and participated in a survival competition for gun enthusiasts.

Brendan grew up in Texas and received a Ph.D. in biology from UC Berkeley in 2006 before turning full-time to journalism. He currently lives in Los Angeles.

Reviews

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must-read for those who read Michael Lewis' "Premonition" as it continues the story of the Wolverines. Though the writing is a bit dry in places, the author does a good job of explaining to the general reader the science behind the various vaccines candidates.

Apart from a few comments (such as describing Trump's brain as a slot machine in which nickels ping around all day then his thoughts all come out all at the same time like a jackpot), the author largely steers clear of editorializing about the various politicians involved, instead leaving the reader to make up his or her own mind. As a result, Jared Kushner comes across as mostly competent, and I'm not sure how I feel about that.

Ultimately, the book is a celebration of science and the people who dedicate their lives to scientific discovery and public health. The book was published before Omicron, so it will be interesting to see who writes what is hopefully the conclusion a trilogy started by Lewis and Borrell.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating companion to one of my favorite books of 2021, Michael Lewis’s The Premonition: A Pandemic Story. Brendan Borrell focuses on the people and events that led to the successful, lightening-fast effort to develop COVID vaccines in the early months of the coronavirus pandemic. I especially liked the main protagonist, Dr. Robert Kadlec, an unsung hero in the story.

I first learned about Robert Kadlec and this book on a Planet Money podcast episode, “Moonshot in the Arm” (11/5/21). It really piqued my interest and led me to this book.

[Miroslav Beblavy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really excellent on the politics and management of the vaccine race

[Kayes Ahmed · Rating 5 out of 5]

like a thriller

This is a great book. Fast paced and full of interesting information and personalities. The book would have been better if the author detailed the inner workings at Pfizer. That behemoth was mentioned in passing. Still, as one of the first books on Covid19 vaccine this is great read.

[Blaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got this as soon as it was published, and it was a real page-turner! It gets into some detail about the science but is still very readable by the layperson.

[Rosemary Baird Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this, especially the inside view of what it took to get a pandemic response going when dealing with trump. All the machinations, rivalries and egos were crazy. But it was hard to keep track of all the characters.

[Tyler Standish · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent overview of the massive effort that went behind the development, manufacturing, and distribution of the first COVID-19 vaccines. It includes a fascinating look into the various technologies that had to come together to make this happen as well as the political landscape that was the backdrop for everything. I highly recommend.

[Scott Pearson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most Americans, heeding the news in 2020-2021 during the coronavirus pandemic, have some bits and pieces about how the “war” against the coronavirus was waged. Very few (yet) have a comprehensive view. Enter Borrell’s The First Shots. In it, he aims to provide a first-draft of a history describing the vaccine’s development. Resulting is an engaging and educational narrative that will inform generations to come.

With many actors, Borrell tellingly provides “A Cast of Characters” before beginning to convey his story. It is hard to keep up with everyone with a role. Readers who like to gear on character development will likely be disappointed by the complexity. The driving force is not the strength of human character but human determination to reach the finish line to fulfill a goal. He ambitiously engages the many domains in this drama, ranging from biomedical industry to research academe, from politicians to government employees. (Even my medical center Vanderbilt makes a few noteworthy showings!)

Because of so many moving parts across many disciplines and political dispositions, this story is inherently difficult to tell. Borrell maintains his objectivity well throughout this account. He shares the entire story with all of its unfettered endings and social rivalries. The Trump administration does not come out well, but this seems more due to the way it played its cards rather than the author’s ideology. The real meat lies in the team that made up Operation Warp Speed who bonded like soldiers in battle. They seemed to keep their eyes on the goal despite the world falling apart around them. That team had many contributors.

Readers looking for an easy story or for political affirmations should look elsewhere. Borrell’s nuanced narrative instead will inform future historians. Journalists and students looking for a birds-eye view of what happened in this pandemic will be most rewarded for their curiosities. Healthcare workers can better learn how the system works – and doesn’t work. The general public who wishes to learn beyond the day’s headlines can inform themselves by this fair and balanced treatment. Overall, this account provides a much needed summary of America’s pandemic story and prepares us for the coming evolution of whatever is coming next.

[Graeme · Rating 3 out of 5]

I often find myself asking what the apparent purpose of a book should be. I am not interested in a cracking tale of medicine, science, government, and politics, though I think that Brendan Borrell did a workmanlike job of pulling those threads together. The purpose I seek is to understand how to make projects of this magnitude and importance work so that lives are saved, the best characteristics of human beings are understood, encouraged, and utilized, and the worst are minimized and ameliorated. I don't think that a book format is capable of achieving that purpose, and that a single author could accomplish it. It's not always a strictly rational process either. I constantly Googled the names of the various players so that I could see pictures of them, read about their work and their education, form judgements about them, and see if I trust them. I want to know what worked, what didn't work, why, how long it took versus how long it should have taken, and what to do next time. We can never remove all the human frailties, the jealousy and egotism, the malice and the incompetence, but we can learn, again and again, how to manage them and do it better next time.

I suspect that the history of vast projects like this can be assembled by software that processes all the conversations, feelings, presentations, messages, and letters into vast collections of data that can then be processed by machine learning, deep learning, and newer, better forms of artificial intelligence, and which will then require human intelligence, by far the most sophisticated, for questions, hypotheses, conclusions, and recommendations. No one human being can feed and structure all the enormous repositories of information and data, but a small team of smart people can work at the back end of the machines to look for answers.

[NICK · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brendan Borrell's The First Shots is a thrilling deep dive into the chaotic race to develop and distribute COVID-19 vaccines, weaving heroic science, corporate rivalries, and political missteps. Built on over 100 interviews, it tracks the pandemic’s early days—from Jason McLellan’s spike protein breakthrough to Stéphane Bancel’s funding chase in Davos. It spotlights Anthony Fauci, Bob Kadlec, and whistleblower Michael Callahan in Wuhan, exposing bureaucratic fumbles and Trump’s downplaying of the crisis.
As a geriatric nurse in long-term care, I connected deeply with the book’s hospital chaos—Callahan’s ventilator shortages in Wuhan mirrored the fear and scarcity I faced protecting frail residents from COVID-19’s ravages. The book’s focus on vaccine logistics hit home: it details Operation Warp Speed’s “moonshot” to produce 300 million doses, grappling with supply chain bottlenecks like glass vials and cold storage for mRNA vaccines. Borrell vividly describes the scramble to scale manufacturing, from Moderna’s 60-day timeline to Novavax’s insect-cell production, and distribution hurdles, like prioritizing nursing homes amid limited supplies—issues I saw firsthand as doses trickled to my facility.
The thriller-like pacing, a scientific whodunit, captures the urgency, with rivalries (Moderna vs. Novavax vs. Oxford) driving innovation. Borrell explains mRNA tech and trials clearly, making science accessible. Kirkus praises its grip, though some note its U.S.-centric lens. Factually robust (90%+ alignment with WHO, HHS records), it’s credible (A-grade) with no major logical flaws.
A must-read, it reflects my long-term care struggles, celebrating science’s triumph over chaos.

[Jean · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is informative, but it reads like a report. It dumps data on you without a gripping storyline like “The Great Influenza” by John Barry.

[Padraic · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read. page turner. in the business thriller style of Bad Blood and Barbarians at the Gate.

forever thankful for all involved in making these vaccines a reality 🙏

[Scraper Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an excellent book.

[Katarina Watney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting and helpful overview of Operation Warp Speed and the effort to develop, manufacture, and distribute vaccines for COVID-19. Structured as a political re-telling, less policy analysis, but interesting to get a look inside the mission. Recommend.

[Stephanie]

Interesting behind the scenes look at the development of the Covid vaccines. The first part of this has lots of science but it is made as easy to understand as possible. The description of how Covid affects the body was very vivid. Lots of description of the politics and money involved.

[Kate T · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really interesting book on the government and industry players involved in getting shots into arms. I was really impressed with the science writing (as someone involved with gene therapy work). The audiobook was a bit hard to follow at times due to all the characters (the paper book has a cast of characters that is easier to follow), but I did appreciate the Fauci and Trump impressions.

[Socraticgadfly · Rating 3 out of 5]

The 3.0 comes from a split rating of 3.5 stars for judging it in its original context vs. 2.5 for it being dated, dated indeed now. See my rating here at the Graph for more.

[Katie Avalos · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is densely packed with fascinating information presented in an utterly compelling narrative form. Before reading this, I had read several lengthy articles on the topic, but I still really had not grasped the scope of the scientific, and, really more impressively, bureaucratic miracle these vaccinations were. I believe this book will stand as an important document of all that went into attempting to end the largest pandemic in a century.

[C Baker · Rating 2 out of 5]

Of all the COVID-19 books I have read, this is the driest and most boring. The book is about the race to the vaccine and focuses more on government efforts than scientists efforts, which is a good thing. It also gives more attention to the scientists at NIH who I do not think get enough credit for their efforts. Worth reading anyway.

[Ange · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a mildly interesting read, but I've given it three stars due to its focus on the more political and logistical aspects of vaccine development and production rather than the science behind the vaccines. If you want to read about a lot of men calling meetings then this is the book to read. However if you aren't from the US you might find it hard going - the only names I recognised were Tony Fauci, Jared Kushner and the ex POTUS. I did not like the self important tone of the writing, nor the unnecessary anecdotes scattered throughout. This most inane of these is near the end and describes the moment when FDA's Peter Marks bags up a turd "the consistency of melted ice-cream" that his dog has just deposited on the grass. Is this some kind of symbolism or just an smart-arsey comment chucked in to pad out the pages? Don't know, but although it has a great story to tell, this book doesn't really bring the reader along and is not on a par with the best of science writing.

[Dale Bentz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having read Premonition by Michael Lewis and Nightmare Scenario by Abutaleb and Paletta, I actually found this one by Borrell to be the best of the three, as it painted its canvas with broader strokes while still producing a self-contained but comprehensive story. Alas, the pandemic continues even as we approach the one year anniversary of the first shots into arms. While the future remains impossible to foresee, we can be encouraged by the devoted industry and government scientists who stood their ground, did not sacrifice their principles, and pulled off some absolutely incredible achievements. Surely, more of these will be needed, now and in the years to come.

[Betty Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Account of the inner workings of the American response to the covid-19 outbreak. Heroic efforts, unscrupulous dealings, backstabbing, miscommunication are identified clearly with the source material identified. Many lessons should have been learned. The key takeaway: politics should never be more important than protecting citizens

[Joan Fung-Tomc · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent read....very informative on the behind-the-scene events/ decision and personalities in the national effort to develop vaccines and monoclonal antibodies for COVID. Brendan Borrell also provides insight in the various pharma companies racing to get their COVID vaccine to market. A timely book but with the ups/downs of the ongoing pandemic, the story /lessons of COVID remains to told.

[Belmont Kirch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Author does a great job of explaining the research and development that led to the development of the COVID-19. For non medical readers, it gives comprehensive overview of the science, technological and medical developments, and people that contributed to this monumental efforts.

[Neil Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellently reported and told.

[Susan Jesse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Written almost like a novel. Just enough science as to not be overwhelming.

[Nancy H. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating walk through the players, politics & process for the development of the COVID vaccine.

[Yama Chen · Rating 4 out of 5]

A highly recommendable book for decisions making in real life.

[Louis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book on CD in my car.

First, the book comes with a preface of all the players' names. This would have been helpful if I read the book in print. It was more difficult to keep up with all the names without a printed guide.

Perhaps there also was a organization chart included in the print edition as well. If not, one would be appropriate for the various U.S. bureaucracies involved in this story.

In the epilogue, the author reveals that he conducted interviews with several of the people mentioned in the book. This explains how he can recapitulate states of mind or quotes from his sources as he obviously wasn't there.

I will address the elephant in the room. I am no fan of Donald Trump or his presidency. But what impressed me the most was how his staff would not necessarily just capitulate to his decision-making process or his outbursts, but would often talk him down from making unwise decisions.

As the election year (2020) progressed, Trump's concern about his image influenced the pace of the vaccine development. Fortunately there were bureaucrats in place who subtly would sabotage his or his officials' decisions in the interest of public health. I had not considered the relative power of the bureaucrats in this process. Thank God they were there!

Jared Kushner, who of course had to be involved in these matters, does not come off badly. That surprised me.

One of the most interesting processes was the decision on how to allocate doses in the beginning. Do the first shots go to nursing-home residents, the elderly in general, the health-care workers on the front line, or first-come, first-served? It is no surprise that a Republican administration would delegate it to the states. But how many doses do you send each state? Proportional to the overall population or to the designated priority groups? Do governors decide the prioritization? All of this was fascinating to read about as different groups had their champions and detractors.

The science was well-explained so that a lay person could understand it. It became clear in the clinical trials that concern was given to having a test population reflective of the demographic make-up of the U.S. The distrust of doctors, especially U.S. government doctors, among African-Americans after the Tuskegee syphilis-testing scandal, was a problem in getting participants in the clinical trials, even when blacks were disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 virus.

It might have been better if the approach of the book had not been chronological (with some flashbacks). Perhaps if one section had dealt with the science and one with the political maneuvering it might have been clearer. As it is written, the jumps between the two topics are often confusing.

I am not sure that we needed to have everyone's back story either.

But I learned a lot from this title. Certainly more than I knew from the MSM coverage of the time or from Trump's non-stop Tweetfest.

I recommend this but be prepared to assimilate a lot of info.

[Yegor Voronin · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a vaccine expert who followed the development of the COVID-19 vaccines as it happened and personally knows some of the individuals mentioned, I approached Brendan Borrell's "The First Shots" with both interest and a critical eye. A book like this must succeed on three levels: research, scientific accuracy, and storytelling. Borrell excels at the first two, but underdelivers on the third, making this a good book that falls short of being great.

First, the strengths. Borrell has clearly done his homework. The level of research is impressive, and he successfully untangles the complex science behind the vaccines for a general audience. From my expert perspective, the scientific explanations are conveyed with remarkable accuracy—I only noticed one small mistake in the entire book.

Where the book falters is in its primary goal: telling an engaging and coherent story. The race for a vaccine was a sprawling, chaotic event involving countless companies, government agencies, and political players. While Borrell captures this complexity, he never quite wrangles it into a clear narrative. Despite my deep familiarity with the subject, I was often lost. Intrigues would surface and then resolve, but it was frequently difficult to follow what exactly had happened, what the stakes were, and whether the outcome was a net positive or negative.

This confusion is amplified by the author's handling of the Trump administration's role. Borrell is clearly not a fan of how the politicians handled the response, but he consistently stops short of calling things as they were. This journalistic hedging, perhaps intended to maintain neutrality, ultimately makes the story more confusing. Instead of providing the clarity that history requires, it often muddies the waters, leaving the reader to guess at the truth.

Overall, "The First Shots" is a valuable, deeply researched book, and I did learn some interesting new details from it. However, its narrative shortcomings make it a frustrating read. It's a good account that, with a stronger storytelling hand and a clearer voice, could have been the definitive history it set out to be.