The Flu (Paperback)

by Jacqueline Druga-Johnston (Author)
Key Phrases: quarantine trailer, respirator mask, Lars Rayburn, Chief Owens, Los Angeles (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Throughout history there have been several thousand different strains of influenza. Each year hundreds are active. Chances are, this year, you will catch one of those strains. You will cough, sneeze, and your body will ache. Without a second thought, you'll take a double dose of green liquid, go to bed, and swear you'll feel better in the morning. Not this time. In 1918 forty-million people succumbed to a particular strain of swine flu. It appeared out of nowhere, and just as quickly as it surfaced, the Spanish Flu vanished. Gone for good. Or so we thought. Though mankind has anticipated its resurfacing for some time, mankind is ill prepared. Mutated and with a vengeance, the Spanish Flu returns. In a world blackened with plague, a glimmer of light exists in the small town of Lodi, Ohio. They shine as a sanctuary because they ... are 'flu-free' In the wake of the reality that they are spared, the spirit and strength of Lodi is tested. It becomes a fight against what is morally right or wrong in an increasingly difficult battle to stay healthy and alive until the flu has run its course.

Product Details

• Paperback: 334 pages
• Publisher: Lachesis Publishing (August 28, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1885093489
• ISBN-13: 978-1885093486
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #3,357,949 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A frighteningly plausible novel, September 7, 2006

By	David Lee Summers (Las Cruces, NM, USA) - See all my reviews

The Flu is a novel that takes its premise right from today's headlines. A flu strain similar to the one responsible for the Spanish Flu Pandemic of 1918 is being kept alive at a secret research facility in Alaska. A simple accident allows the virus to escape and, because travel is so easy, the virus rapidly spreads across the United States and around the world.

However, what makes this novel a real treat is not the frighteningly plausible premise, it's the point of view. Instead of focusing on the scientists combating the pandemic, Jacqueline Druga-Johnston tells the story from the vantage point of a believably dysfunctional family living in a small town in Ohio. The heroine is a divorced mother trying to balance the responsibilities of caring for her three sons and the attentions of her ex-husband and new boyfriend while the flu pandemic spreads across the nation. The novel ends with a take-no-prisoners climax as the flu reaches Ohio.

In The Flu, Jacqueline Druga-Johnston deftly balances action, wry humor, tragedy and ultimately hope as she gives us an unflinching view of the human spirit in time of crisis.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Grab a box of tissues!, September 11, 2006

By	Melanie Holdbrook (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews

To my surprise and delight, this book not what I expected. I purchased this book because I thought it was about `The Flu', and a non fiction book. It may have been my error but it turned into my happiness. What a rush. The flu delivers page after page of action, humor, and tension. I fell in love with the characters, and couldn't stop reading. It was indeed one of the most emotional stories I have ever read. Not for the faint hearted. Grab a tissue, you'll need it for, The Flu.