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Deadliest Enemy cover art

Deadliest Enemy

Written by: Michael T. Osterholm, Mark Olshaker, Michael T. Osterholm PhD MPH
Narrated by: Jamie Renell
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Publisher's Summary

We are facing an overwhelming army of deadly, invisible enemies. We need a plan - before it's too late.

Unlike natural disasters, whose destruction is concentrated in a limited area over a period of days, and illnesses, which have devastating effects but are limited to individuals and their families, infectious disease has the terrifying power to disrupt everyday life on a global scale, overwhelming public and private resources and bringing trade and transportation to a grinding halt.

In today's world, it's easier than ever to move people, animals, and materials around the planet, but the same advances that make modern infrastructure so efficient have made epidemics and even pandemics nearly inevitable. And as outbreaks of Ebola, MERS, yellow fever, and Zika have demonstrated, we are woefully underprepared to deal with the fallout. So what can - and must - we do in order to protect ourselves from mankind's deadliest enemy?

Drawing on the latest medical science, case studies, policy research, and hard-earned epidemiological lessons, Deadliest Enemy explores the resources and programs we need to develop if we are to keep ourselves safe from infectious disease. The authors show how we could wake up to a reality in which many antibiotics no longer cure, bioterror is a certainty, and the threat of a disastrous influenza pandemic looms ever larger. Only by understanding the challenges we face can we prevent the unthinkable from becoming the inevitable.

Deadliest Enemy is high scientific drama, a chronicle of medical mystery and discovery, a reality check, and a practical plan of action.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2017 Michael T. Osterholm (P)2017 Hachette Audio

What the critics say

"Osterholm and Olshaker calmly show us that Mother Nature is the 'greatest bioterrorist of them all.' Marshaling solid scientific evidence, they question why we have spent billions on the 'war on terror' and virtually nothing for an inevitable calamity that will kill millions. This stunning book is a clarion call to mount a Manhattan Project 2.0 that would prepare for the coming global pandemic. Someone should listen." (Kai Bird, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and coauthor of American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer)

"As a former governor responsible for the welfare and health of my state, and a former United States Senator concerned with national security, I applaud Deadliest Enemy as a chilling and important wakeup call. Not only is it a fascinating human story and medical detective drama, it lays out the great public health challenges facing humanity and the actions that need to be initiated or enhanced to avert their life or death consequences." (Bob Graham, former governor of Florida, US senator, and chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee)

"Deadliest Enemy is a lucid and concise account of how the battle against deadly germs is in many ways the most important war of all. Deadliest Enemy deftly melds authoritative science with a gripping narrative to tell what is arguably the most important story of our era." (Peter Bergen, CNN's national security analyst and author of United States of Jihad)

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Almost prophetic

Great read and the section on the Corona virus is particularly ominous to read right now.

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loved it + will listen to again.

narrator was amazing too!

language was simple enough to not to have to reach for dictionary too often. :)

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Great book!

Very informative and as I came to understand, always relevant -not just because of the current pandemic. The author is clearly well-versed in the topic and has extensive experience. I enjoyed how he also included some personal experiences that remind us, after all, we are talking about human life.

My only complaint, as many others had mentioned, was that the reader keeps referring to the WHO as the “who.” However, after a few instances you get used to it.

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interesting. Would recommend.

Published back in 2017, it's a bit eary listening to this given the current circumstances. Information about muscitoes was interesting to hear.

Would have liked to hear the author reading the material.

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mind blowing!!!

absolutely loved this book. it's real and truthful also scary and maddening the fact that what we are going through today has all been predicted in this book years ahead...very educational if you want to learn more about infectious diseases and the risk and what we are NOT doing to prevent this....

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Eye-opening

The book was truly amazing, minus the hypothetical pandemic. given we are actually in one, we have to wait and see if the second part of that scenario plays in real life in the winter of 2021

let's hope not

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  • JMS
  • 2020-04-05

Hindsight is 2020 (pun intended)

Praised by critics as “a wake-up call’ when it was published in 2017, I chose to listen to this audiobook after I heard Dr. Osterholm interviewed on the Joe Rogan Experience podcast, which was released on March 10, just one day before the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 pandemic on March 11. The authors pose a hypothetical pandemic crisis description that is scarily prescient of our own situation. A compelling listen / read on understanding the impact and implications of infectious disease on a global scale.

Podcast of my review available on Apply podcasts and Anchor under Audiobook reviews in 5 minutes:

Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/review-deadliest-enemy-our-war-against-killer-germs/id1500773777?i=1000470582665

Anchor podcast: https://anchor.fm/audiobookreviews/episodes/Review-of-Deadliest-Enemy-Our-War-Against-Killer-Germs-by-Michael-T--Osterholm--Mark-Olshaker-ece11v

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Learn about This.

Very informative, I learned a lot about pandemics and how virus's spread. Lot's of good information.

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Fantastic

This book is excellently written with clear expertise from the writers. It’s wonderfully laid out and fascinating.

The science is explained at an accessible level and all facts reference their sources for review. This should be required reading for all people living in the 21st century.

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  • FZ
  • 2020-03-22

Amazing book. World leaders should read!

Lays out what we need to do to protect humanity from another life changing pandemic. Well written and holds your interest throughout.

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