This is a wonderful book. It has only 90 some pages and you can read through it fast. The book brakes down this flu first by explaining what it is on the molecular level. Then it gives six scenarios of what the experts think might happen. The book talks about medications and natural foods that might help you to fight against the flu if you contract it. The book discusses the 1918 flu and other flues that have attacked in the last 100 years. Last and most important it give you a list of items you should stock up. If and when this does becomes dangerous for people many items will be gone from store shelves in a matter of just a few hours. The book in no way uses scare tactics but just presents you with the facts and informs you of what the experts see as the potentially dangerous outcome of this H5N1 bird flu.

There had been rumurs of a unusual and virulent pneumonia-like illness in the region, but nothing was certain. The Chinese authorities had begun work - ruling out diseases such as ebola and other haemorraghic fevers - but they had no effective medical response to the condition. And given its appearance in Vietnam, containing the unknown infection was already an uphill struggle. In Geneva, the WHO rapidly accepted the need for global action. Working from a never-used plan drawn up to deal with a 'flu pandemic, it started marshalling forces to identify the contagious agent and develop a treatment response. Larry Altshuler tells how the Organization's 'flu specialist charged with finding out what the virus was, began crossing off what it was not. To his alarm, he realised they could not identify it because it was brand new. Calm was restored almost by accident. The WHO's world wide alert worked. Close examination of arriving travellers, hospital staff and other groups led to effective quarantining of possible carriers. Vietnam - the poorest country to experience an outbreak - was the first to be declared Flu-free. There are no specific drugs to combat this flu but the story is a positive one. By comparison with the 5,000 that 'flu kills annually in Britain, the 750 victims of the flu across two continents seems slight. DNA analysis of the virus has revealed its genetic code in record time. The coalition of scientists brought together by the WHO has discovered that the flu is far from an unstoppable monster. On the contrary, it has barely mutated in the months since its emergence, making finding a drug treatment or vaccine relatively easy.

This is a pretty straightforward treatment of the potential Avian Flu Pandemic that contains some useful information and insights from an M.D. I didn't give it 5 stars since much of the information can be found in the public domain at the CDC and WHO websites. In addition, the very nature of the Avian Flu story lends itself to quick developments which quickly date a book of this nature.

These minor criticisms aside, I appreciated the author's discussion of conventional flu treatments and possible alternative remedies. He also included a list of items that you should consider storing in anticipation of a panic, if the virus goes pandemic. I didn't think the book was over the top in terms of trying to frighten people. This is a frightening topic, but the author presented a range of possible scenarios from the mundane to the apocalyptic. You can either allow yourself to be scared silly, or you can take the information available, make your own plan and rest easy. Knowledge kills fear.

My mother asked me to buy this book for her, and she has not slept since and I wish I read it first. She is upset because bird flu is a worrying possibility, yes, but also because this book writes about it in a way that is designed to make you think, o dear what if the neighbors infect me? how would i save myself, if other people were suffering? It is a bad state of mind, to think of your self when the whole community is badly sick. This book remind me of those men who go to remote deserts and dig fallout shelters and hide there with guns and canned soup. It sounds too excited about the possibility of everybody else dying and being horribly dangerous to you like a zombie film, even though it is written by doctors who should be wise and not selling to people's selfishness and fear. My mother keeps crying in the night and she needs comfort and shame on them.

As a medical research scientist, I can say beyond a doubt that a flu pandemic is brewing that may change modern civilization in ways that will go beyond our wildest imagination soon. Physicians are observing the creation of a super strain of the avian influenza virus, H5N1, so-called bird flu, that has the potential to kill millions of men, women, and children in every nation -- not to mention destroy our food supply and the transportation systems they employ.

According to the World Health Organization, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a recipe for disaster is clearly in the early genetic-mixing stage. We stand on the abyss of a global wildfire event that will start with the flick of a "viral" matchstick, burn everything in its path, leaving civil disorder and misery in its aftermath on an unprecedented-scale. But what can we do other than prepare ourselves for the inevitable death of our society as we know it? Other than prudent safety precautions, we can also boost our immune systems psychologically against the true number one killer: s-t-r-e-s-s.

Just look at what happened to millions of people impacted by natural disasters in the past year alone from earthquakes, hurricanes, and tsunamis worldwide: They are suffering from PTSD--Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Guess what stress does to your ability to fight bacterial and viral infections? Do you know that when a pandemic strikes within 30-days 100% of the population will be exposed to the virus, but that only 50% will get ill? Did you know that a pandemic comes in 3 phases with the second being the most deadly? Did you know that the most susceptible age group when the virus "hits" is not the young or the old, but the tender-age group 20 to 30? In plain terms, this book will give you the rest of the story; how nature ensures the "survival of the smartest!" Indeed information is power and it will make the difference between life and death in the coming pandemics!

So get smart and raise your I.Q.: "immunity quotient!"

Dr. John Jay Harper is executive director of the not-for-profit, American Delphi Academy, Spokane, Washington, author of Tranceformers: Shamans of the 21st Century, and a bird flu report website at johnjayharper.com

This is a relatively easy book to read and doesn't get bogged down in too much "technical detail." I've read two other books about the flu and one about the international epidemic in WWI. While those books were generally historical, this one is practical and actually addresses things we can do if the flu gets over here. It's worth the time and money to read.

- you feel that $25 is too much to pay for an oil change but have no problem breaking down on the highway and causing 4000 of your fellow commuters to be late for work.

- you are a firm believer in `riding out' tornadoes, typhoons, tsunamis or hurricanes, only to have taxpayer dollars pay for rescuing you and your dog from your rooftop after the fact.

- you feel that automobile or health insurance is a waste of money but you have no problem showing up at the hospital as your wife is about to give birth or you've just nailed yourself through the hand or driven through your neighbor's picture window.

- you believe the government owes you a living yet don't think you need to pay taxes.

In other words, this book is for people who are not prepared and who think that either A. the government is going to take care of them, or B. fear of the bird flu is a lot of baloney. Because as we always find, those who take responsibility for themselves and their families have already bought this book or some other, but it's the irresponsible segment of the population who believe that things will all work out in the end without them having to lift a finger- because in the end they think the government would never let them down and so they don't have to take personal responsibility for themselves.

So the next time you hear someone say, "The bird flu is just a lot of hype," look at them and picture them as the one who gets sick and infects you and your family because they A. don't know what the symptoms are B. have not taken appropriate measures when (and it is when) the bird flu arrives and end up getting everyone else sick C. don't know what to do to prevent the spread of the virus through alternative means and end up being the ones to panic and cause the pandemic in the long run, D. think that Tamiflu is going to save anybody and don't realize that Donald Rumsfeld used to run the company that makes Tamiflu (is there any surprise that Tamiflu is the govt's choice for 'vaccine'??), E. believe it is up to someone else to protect them and their family.

The next time you hear someone say, "I'm not paying $10 for a lot of hype," roll your eyes, and make sure you stay as far away from that person as possible- because chances are, they'll be part of the problem, while you'll be armed with the solution.

Great book small and organized, 6 Chapters. A few ilustrations. A great list of FOODS FOR AN EMERGENCY and EMERGENCY SUPPLIES. Super section on alternative treatments that I didn't see anywhere. I liked the way they interviewed Dr. Fauci (who has been on TV alot) and Dr Tabenburger (the guy who discovered the DNA of the 1918 virus) to include their opinions. Wasn't crazy about the cover-seems a little extreme. Overall, since I live in an area that is probably the first place birds will arrive in this country (and a long way from traditional medicals).

A practical, informative book, with the information you need to be prepared. I especially like the information on herbal remedies - key, since we know that vaccinations will be next to useless.

This little book is just what I needed. Tells me what the bird flu is (a little too much for my interests) and more importantly how to protect and prepare for what may (or may not) come. The two things I liked about this book are that 1. I didn't have to read 240 pages to find what I was looking for-- at under 100 pages this thing is concise and specific, and 2. there's a chapter on natural prevention-- so I don't have to rely on our fantastic federal government response to issue me my vaccine-- I can take this Dr's advice and use the natural preventions/cures that are available at my local health food store or grocery store. Because somehow (and the media is saying this now) I don't really trust anyone else to protect me should this thing bloom. Call me cynical but when this thing hits, I can imagine your local rep in Congress will be somewhat difficult to find and as this book says, throwing money at the problem, which is what Congress specializes in, isn't going to save people's lives. I even bought one for my neighbor.

I am wary of relying on the government and pharmaceutical companies when it comes to treating the flu, never mind the killer kind. Learning about alternative treatments/cures for the Bird Flu makes sense. This tidy "Primer" provided holistic options for curing the Bird Flu (worth the $10 in itself). It also is a surprisingly interesting and lucid read in terms of all things Bird Flu, from biology to history. You get a lot of bang for the buck.

- you feel that $25 is too much to pay for an oil change but have no problem breaking down on the highway and causing 4000 of your fellow commuters to be late for work.

- you are a firm believer in `riding out' tornadoes, typhoons, tsunamis or hurricanes, only to have taxpayer dollars pay for rescuing you and your dog from your rooftop after the fact.

- you feel that automobile or health insurance is a waste of money but you have no problem showing up at the hospital as your wife is about to give birth or you've just nailed yourself through the hand or driven through your neighbor's picture window.

- you believe the government owes you a living yet don't think you need to pay taxes.

In other words, this book is for people who are not prepared and who think that either A. the government is going to take care of them, or B. fear of the bird flu is a lot of baloney. Because as we always find, those who take responsibility for themselves and their families have already bought this book or some other, but it's the irresponsible segment of the population who believe that things will all work out in the end without them having to lift a finger- because in the end they think the government would never let them down and so they don't have to take personal responsibility for themselves.

So the next time you hear someone say, "The bird flu is just a lot of hype," look at them and picture them as the one who gets sick and infects you and your family because they A. don't know what the symptoms are B. have not taken appropriate measures when (and it is when) the bird flu arrives and end up getting everyone else sick C. don't know what to do to prevent the spread of the virus through alternative means and end up being the ones to panic and cause the pandemic in the long run, D. think that Tamiflu is going to save anybody and don't realize that Donald Rumsfeld used to run the company that makes Tamiflu (is there any surprise that Tamiflu is the govt's choice for 'vaccine'??), E. believe it is up to someone else to protect them and their family.

The next time you hear someone say, "I'm not paying $10 for a lot of hype," roll your eyes, and make sure you stay as far away from that person as possible- because chances are, they'll be part of the problem, while you'll be armed with the solution.

Great book small and organized, 6 Chapters. A few ilustrations. A great list of FOODS FOR AN EMERGENCY and EMERGENCY SUPPLIES. Super section on alternative treatments that I didn't see anywhere. I liked the way they interviewed Dr. Fauci (who has been on TV alot) and Dr Tabenburger (the guy who discovered the DNA of the 1918 virus) to include their opinions. Wasn't crazy about the cover-seems a little extreme. Overall, since I live in an area that is probably the first place birds will arrive in this country (and a long way from traditional medicals).