The German translation of A History of the World in Six Plagues (Eingesperrt und ausgegrenzt), has been shortlisted for the Best Science Book Prize in Austria.
A HISTORY OF THE WORLD IN SIX PLAGUES named one of the most anticipated microhistories in 2025 by Scientific American, Best feminist books for March 2025 by Ms. Magazine, Selected Reading for March 2025 by Ebony Magazine, Best nonfiction by Bookbub, and one of the best books of 2025 by librarians in The Seattle Times.
"A fierce polemic arguing that minorities and the poor suffer when diseases rage because governments and the medical profession give them short shrift... Searing."
—Kirkus
“Pandemics thrive on inequities and widen them, providing more kindling for future plagues. This simple lesson has proven devastatingly difficult to learn. But I think that if everyone read Edna Bonhomme’s incredible, humane, insightful book--and I hope they do--we might stand a chance of actually breaking the cycle of neglect and panic.”
—Ed Yong, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of the New York Times bestsellers I Contain Multitudes and An Immense World
‘Fascinating and thought-provoking.’
—Jonathan Kennedy, author of Pathogenesis: How Germs Made History
"Intellectually charged, deeply personal, and exhaustively researched."
—The Lancet
A HISTORY OF THE WORLD IN SIX PLAGUES
Simon & Schuster, Dialogue Books, and Ullstein Verlag | March 2025
A History of the World in Six Plagues traces the long history of viral outbreaks under conditions of social confinement—the plantation system, colonial camps, imprisonment, quarantine, the factory—revealing how these spaces fueled epidemics. It is about the complicated histories of movement and stagnation and the unceasing losses accompanying mass death. The text is a narrative-driven book that breaks the veil of tragedy by examining how confined and infected people survive. This is a book about the time we live in, including the grim reality that our advancements in medicine do not make us immune from emerging diseases.
Watch this video of Edna Bonhomme & New York Times journalist, Linda Villarosa on C-SPAN discuss A History of the World in Six Plagues at the New York Public Library.
Listen to Edna on BBC Science Cafe where she provides insight on global health and diseases.
Edna is featured on NPR’s Code Switch to discuss measles, pandemics, and A History of the World in Six Plagues.
Listen to Edna on Kirkus Review podcast discuss A History of the World in Six Plagues.
The Lancet reviews A History of the World in Six Plagues.
Read an excerpt of the book in LRB Bookshop.
A History of the World in Six Plague excerpt in RollingStone.
Read an excerpt in LitHub.
Read an interview with Edna on Salon.
Tagesspiegel reviews the German translation of A History of the World in Six Plagues.
Der Standard, an Austrian newspaper, interviewed Edna about the German translation of “Eingespertt und ausgegrenzt.”
Here’s an interview of Edna chatting about A History of the World in Six Plagues in The Berliner.
Read an interview in Black Agenda Report.
Listen to a review of the German translation of my book, “Eingesperrt und ausgegrenzt” on Deutschlandfunk Kultur.
Listen to Edna discuss A History of the World in Six Plagues on Novara FM.
Edna and her book are featured on the Member’s Profile of the Author’s Guild.
Read Edna’s profile on Writer’s Digest.
Interview in The Baffler discussing A History of the World in Six Plagues.
Edna’s Profile in National Association of Science Writers.
Edna’s essay in Big Issue discusses lockdowns and misinfromation.
Edna is interviewed by Medico and that discussion is published in English and German.
Read Edna’s Interview in Debutiful.
Listen to Edna on the Kirkwood Public Library Podcast.
Undark Magazine reviews A History of the World in Six Plagues.
Book Review of A History of the World in Six Plagues in Sri Lankan Guardian.
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