A highly infectious, deadly virus from the central African rain forest suddenly appears in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. There is no cure. In a few days 90 percent of its victims are dead. A secret military SWAT team of soldiers and scientists is mobilized to stop the outbreak of this exotic "hot" virus. The Hot Zone tells this dramatic story, giving a hair-raising account of the appearance of rare and lethal viruses and their "crashes" into the human race. Shocking, frightening, and impossible to ignore, The Hot Zone proves that truth really is scarier than fiction. From the Paperback edition.
The dramatic and chilling story of an Ebola virus outbreak in a surburban Washington, D.C. laboratory, with descriptions of frightening historical epidemics of rare and lethal viruses. More hair-raising than anything Hollywood could think of, because it's all true.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
Might have read it even if it wasn't extra credit (I am using my Dad's account-Courtney)
The Demon in the Freezer was absolutely impossible to put down. Richard Preston's books, The Demon in the Freezer and The Hot Zone, have been the only nonfiction books I have read in a long time. Surprisingly, I liked them. The truth of these stories makes them even more fearsome and horrifying; a real life nightmare.
The Demon in the Freezer is about the modern consequences of biowarfare during the arms race and the consequences of the... more info
A thrilling true story The Hot Zone is an engaging true story which reads like a work of fiction; often making it difficult to grasp the gravity of the situation presented. The chronology of the discovery (and sporadic outbreaks) of the filoviruses are presented in a well organized and entertaining manner. In some situations the description is a tad melodramatic, but the overall feeling is intriguing. My only serious critique Preston's description of the Ebola virus as a "highly sophisticated organism". Personally I don't there... more info
Scary and Facinating This book focuses on the events around the Reston Ebola outbreak. This was also a main part of the book Virus Hunter by C.J. Peters that I read a couple of years ago. Preston wasn't one of the participants, but his research is thorough. He talked to all the participants and really gives a good view as to what happened, including the events leading up to the outbreak and anecdotal stories about some of the participants. The one thing this book does is scare the hell out of you. Not in a direct way, but... more info
Quite literally life changing. Most of the previous reviewers have pretty much nailed the book right on the head: it is a fantastic and graphic novel on true events surround Ebola and Marburg. It is written in such a way that even the novice reader could follow, though there are a lot of scientific terminology that may require some googling. For me personally: this book has literally changed my life. I read this a little over two years ago and since then I KNEW I wanted to live studying and/or researching viruses in any way possible... more info
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