I write this review as I am home-bound due to the 2020 COVID-19 flu. How timely and appropriate. (And I started reading before the coronavirus hit!) Spinney includes a history - and prehistory - of flu, the microscopic actions that allow viruses to do their thing, the rights and wrongs of governmental response, the scientific breakthroughs that led to the understanding and actions on the flu, and much more. Even how the naming of the flu happened, and why that nomenclature changed - even though with COVID-19, the politicians are still playing the game. Spinney is an engaging writer, so this is far from a drab reprisal of what happened. Worth a read at any time, and a prophetic warning of ignoring the signs for the future.