Geoffrey Rice. Published by Canterbury University Press, 2017. ISBN 978-1-927145-95-1. Soft covered; contains 96 pages.

This is the account of the 1918 influenza pandemic. The author has written and published extensively on the topic, including having published a number of articles in the NZMJ. The story is tragic, with over 8,000 people dying (at least 6,400 Pakeha and 2,500 Māori). This is about half the number that died in the First World War, with most of the deaths in short 3–4-month period at the end of 1918.

The author is an expert on this topic; he had previously interviewed about 150 people who survived the epidemic. The history book account comes alive with tales of the individual experience of the period. This is enhanced by the photos, figures and tables. The illustrations are both black and white and colour.

There are seven chapters, and at the end of the book are a list of references and suggested further reading and websites, as well as an index for cross referencing content.

The book covers not only the factual history of what happened, such as how most of those who died actually died of secondary pneumonia, but also reviews the disaster management and comments on research and lessons learned.

Any person interested in the history of New Zealand from a medical/health point of view would find this book an interesting read, and may want to hang onto it as a reference with its excellent photos and figures.

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