When first published, Plagues and Peoples became an instant bestseller because it succeeded (like all of McNeill's history books) in interpreting the evolution of humanity in a new context: in this case, under the impact of infectious diseases on peoples and cultures.

From the smallpox that decimated the Indigenous populations of America to the devastating blow of the bubonic plague in China, and the upheavals brought about by the emergence of AIDS in the West in the early 1980s, McNeill traces the impact of epidemics as alternative weapons systems: disease can, many times, bend cultures that weapons cannot.

McNeill delivers yet another gripping, enlightening, and provocative scientific historical thriller that will change the way you view wars and conquests in world history.

“Nothing escapes McNeill: [from] how early Christianity used epidemics to emphasize the importance of eternal life and the need to care for the sick, […] to the reasons that prevented the technologically advanced ‘macroparasitism’ of European imperialism from effectively penetrating Africa in the 19th century. […] An inspired, provocative research accomplishment.” The Kirkus Review