THE LAST TOWN ON EARTH

A frightening portrayal of what the flu pandemic of 1918 was like-and, therefore, what we may be facing today-is one reason this novel is compelling. Set against the backdrop of the early labor movement and the U.S. involvement in the war in Europe, the story is about how the residents of a fictional Pacific Northwest lumber town try to protect themselves from the deadly flu by imposing a quarantine on their community. Henry Stozier's down-home narration captures the rural setting of the story. Speaking quietly and deliberately, he gives no warning that terrible events are about to unfold. By continuing in that vein as the utopian community falls apart, he makes the story all the more moving. S.K. © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine [Published: FEB/ MAR 07]