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Novels About Pandemics
Turning to fiction in a frightening time.
Publicat la 12 Octombrie 2023
Severance: A Novel
Ling MaWorking from home because your company told employees to minimize their potential exposure by staying out of the office and off public transit? Ling Ma’s terrific debut novel — which feels like a crossover episode from “The Office” and “The Walking Dead” — imagines how a catastrophic plague sweeping through New York City impacts workplace culture. “Severance” manages to satirize everything from careerism to apocalyptic thrillers without sacrificing empathy or believability. A super smart page-turner.
A Beginning at the End: A Novel
Mike ChenA hopeful book about a pandemic? Yes, please! Mike Chen’s post-apocalyptic story about the aftermath of a deadly global flu outbreak feels like a light at the end of the coronavirus tunnel. As the novel’s characters rebuild their lives, strangers come together to forge meaningful connections. A moving reminder that we’re all in this together, albeit from six feet apart.
The Eyes of Darkness
Dean KoontzIn this thriller originally published in 1981, Dean Koontz writes about a fictional virus with a name that now seems eerily prescient: “Wuhan-400.” The internet exploded with conspiracy theories claiming (incorrectly) that Koontz predicted the current coronavirus crisis. While the name of the fictional disease does reference Wuhan, the city in China where the COVID-19 outbreak first emerged, that’s where the similarities end. In the novel, “Wuhan-400” is a cutting-edge biological weapon created in labs, and Reuters reports that the first edition of the book called the virus “Gorki-400” after a Russian city. Koontz may not have predicted the future, but he definitely wrote a frighteningly good nail-biter (so wash your hands before you listen).
The Plague: Translated by Stuart Gilbert
Albert CamusNobel Prize winner Albert Camus’ 1947 novel chronicles the experiences of the inhabitants of a quarantined town as rats carrying the bubonic plague spread the deadly disease everywhere. Generally considered an allegory for the French experience under Nazi occupation, this engrossing story remains strikingly relevant today as people adjust to living with the threat of coronavirus.
The Last Man
Mary Shelley“Frankenstein” author Mary Shelley also turns her attention to the plague in “The Last Man.” This post-apocalyptic tale written in 1826 still resonates with readers today, as it describes refugees pouring over borders in a desperate attempt to escape the epidemic, while divisive politics distract citizens and leaders alike from uniting to face the real danger. But it’s not all grim: the protagonist befriends a very good doggo!
Year One
Nora RobertsSpreading rapidly and sparing few, a mysterious illness is decimating the world’s population. Science and technology have failed to stop the deadly virus, but some survivors discover they have developed new magical abilities. Will they use their new paranormal powers to protect — or destroy?
I Am Legend
Richard MathesonWhen a pandemic sweeps the planet in this 1954 post-apocalyptic horror novel by Richard Matheson (“The Twilight Zone”), everyone either dies or becomes a vampire. Except for one man. You may know him as the character played by Will Smith in the 2007 movie adaptation. (Or Vincent Price in the 1964 version “The Last Man on Earth.” Or Charlton Heston in the 1971 version “The Omega Man.”) This winner of the Bram Stoker Lifetime Achievement Award for “Vampire Novel of the Century” defined the zombie-vampire plague genre, where the lone hero battles for survival night after night against invading mutants.
The Strain
Guillermo del ToroIn the first installment of Oscar-winning director Guillermo del Toro and thriller writer Chuck Hogan’s trilogy-turned-TV series, a virus is engulfing New York City, but it’s like nothing the CDC has encountered before. This high-tech vampire novel will thrill lovers of sci-fi and good-old fashioned horror.
The Scarlet Plague
Jack LondonThere's no Harrison Ford or big-hearted dog buddy in this tale, but like in “The Call of the Wild,” Jack London explores the theme of how close civilization lies to sliding back into savagery in this sci-fi novella. The master storyteller imagines a survivor recounting how a devastating pandemic wiped out life and culture to his grandsons, who know nothing of science, or art, or literature.