Reddit reviews The Hot Zone: The Terrifying True Story of the Origins of the Ebola Virus

I'm going to fall back on a couple of non-fiction books that are mind-blowing, although not necessarily on the same scale you're talking about.

On germs, plagues and bio-containment:

The Hot Zone by Richard Preston:

http://www.amazon.com/Hot-Zone-Terrifying-True-Story/dp/0385495226/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1266864059&sr=8-1

The Coming Plague by Laurie Garrett:

http://www.amazon.com/Coming-Plague-Emerging-Diseases-Balance/dp/0140250913/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1266864094&sr=1-1

I read both of these books back to back and it's like reading the same story first covered by the National Enquirer (Hot Zone) and then again by the New York Times (Coming Plague). It's a fascinating look at disease distribution and protection. The Hot Zone is a light easy read that's more sensationalist than scientific, the Coming Plague is the polar opposite, but both are good reads.

Road Fever by Tim Cahill:

http://www.amazon.com/Road-Fever-Tim-Cahill/dp/0394758374/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1266864207&sr=1-1

Guy is hired by GM for a promotional stunt. Drive their new truck from the tip of Argentina to Prudhoe Bay, Alaska as fast as he can. The problems he has getting through South and Central America are amazing, and not just culturally, politically.

Into the Heart of Borneo by Redmond O'Hanlon:

http://www.amazon.com/Into-Heart-Borneo-Redmond-OHanlon/dp/0394755405/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1266864285&sr=1-1

Take your average academic natural history book reviewer and throw him in the jungle for a month! It will be great!

I suggest you read "The Hotzone" to understand more about ebola.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Hot-Zone-Terrifying-Story/dp/0385495226/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1343751008&sr=8-1&keywords=hotzone

Read The Hotzone... Takes what you just posted and puts a human face on it as you Nope your way through the book. Not that anyone wants to buy it but link for lazy

Once a hemorrhagic fever hits a major airline corridor we are all going to be screwed. It ain't gonna be zombies that finish us, seriously. Ebola with its 50-80% mortality rate will do it.

The Hot Zone is the scariest book I've ever read. And it's non-fiction.

Fuck.

FTFY

The Hot Zone. Fantastic and terrifying.

https://www.amazon.com/Hot-Zone-Terrifying-Story-Origins/dp/0385495226/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

I second the reading idea! Ask your history or science teachers for suggestions of accessible books. I'm going to list some that I found interesting or want to read, and add more as I think of them.

A short history of nearly everything by Bill Bryson. Title explains it all. It is very beginner friendly, and has some very entertaining stories. Bryson is very heavy on the history and it's rather long but you should definitely make every effort to finish it.

Lies my teacher told me

The greatest stories never told (This is a whole series, there are books on Presidents, science, and war as well).

There's a series by Edward Rutherfurd that tells history stories that are loosely based on fact. There are books on London and ancient England, Ireland, Russia, and one on New York

I read this book a while ago and loved it- Autobiography of a Tibetan Monk It's about a monk who was imprisoned for 30 years by the Chinese.

The Grapes of Wrath.

Les Misérables. I linked to the unabridged one on purpose. It's SO WORTH IT. One of my favorite books of all time, and there's a lot of French history in it. It's also the first book that made me bawl at the end.

You'll also want the Adventures of Tom Sawyer, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Great Gatsby, The Federalist Papers.

I'm not sure what you have covered in history, but you'll definitely want to find stuff on all the major wars, slavery, the Bubonic Plague, the French Revolution, & ancient Greek and Roman history.

As for science, find these two if you have any interest in how the brain works (and they're pretty approachable).
Phantoms in the brain
The man who mistook his wife for a hat

Alex and Me The story of a scientist and the incredibly intelligent parrot she studied.

For a background in evolution, you could go with The ancestor's tale

A biography of Marie Curie

The Wild Trees by Richard Preston is a quick and easy read, and very heavy on the adventure. You'll also want to read his other book The Hot Zone about Ebola. Absolutely fascinating, I couldn't put this one down.

The Devil's Teeth About sharks and the scientists who study them. What's not to like?

Based on your incredibly specific description of your sister, I have in the last minute figured out what decades of knowing her prevented you from seeing.

She wants a copy of this book and a Moka Express

Are you looking for a textbook or non-fiction books?

I am a microbiologist so these books are biased towards that:

The Coming Plague. Its a little sensationalist but its a good read.

The Hot Zone This is the book that got me into microbiology and started me on the path to being a microbiologist.

The Immortal Life of Henriatta Lacks Light on the science but still puts a personal context to science especially tissue culture.

The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History Good historical look on a disease that we still fear today.

Not a book but check out This Week in Microbiology and This Week in Virology podcasts. Great and informative.

Wikipedia's list of dystopian films gives a useful overview of the genre.

Outbreak is the most obvious analogue to Contagion. IIRC Ridley Scott was set to direct an adaptation of Crisis in the Hot Zone with Jodie Foster but it was scrapped due to the parallel development of Outbreak.

A film not on the wikipedia list that is more about contemporary reaction to crisis is The Trigger Effect.

The Hot Zone if you are looking for something factual.

If you want a fiction based in facts, then I got nothing for you.

If you want an exploration into the minds of doctors and health professionals, then I recommend Complications.

"Hot Zone"

for anyone who has read The Hot Zone, this will make you crap your pants.

on the topic of viruses, The Hot Zone was pretty crazy, too. i haven't read Demon in the Freezer, yet. not sure if i want to :S

The Hot Zone

I remember reading The Hot Zone quite a few years ago. I would recommend it.

Educate yourselves ladies. Smallpox is one of my favorite bugs right behind Ebola and Marburg.

http://www.amazon.com/Scourge-Once-Future-Threat-Smallpox/dp/0871138301
http://www.amazon.com/Demon-Freezer-Richard-Preston/dp/0345466632/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1321538440&sr=1-1
http://www.amazon.com/Hot-Zone-Terrifying-True-Story/dp/0385495226/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1321538440&sr=1-6