From Publishers Weekly
In a medical mystery that has the tension and pace of Richard Preston's The Hot Zone but lacks its satisfying sense of closure, Washington Post investigative reporter Thompson recounts the events surrounding the anthrax attacks of late 2001. Though she alludes to possible connections between the weaponized anthrax found in several letters and al-Qaida (as well as domestic scientists), Thompson's story is more about the successes and failures of the public health process than a whodunit. Ranging from the Florida offices of American Media Inc. to the halls of Congress, she uses extensive interviews to describe the behind-the-scenes responses to the appearance of anthrax-filled envelopes in the U.S. mail. What emerges isn't so harsh a condemnation as the title indicates, but rather a portrait of scientists, doctors, politicians and law enforcement officials, all trying to defuse a biological crisis while working within conflicting institutional traditions. While she valorizes the scientists working to identify the sources of the seemingly disconnected anthrax cases, Thompson seems most interested in the postal workers who were put at risk-unnecessarily, she says-in the course of their day-to-day jobs. She begins and ends with the story of Leroy Richmond, who inhaled aerosolized anthrax spores while working at the Brentwood postal facility in Washington, D.C., but survived the infection, and Thompson's book is ultimately a tribute to him and the other postal workers who were victims of what she concludes was "a preventable industrial accident exacerbated by a series of government blunders and bad judgments." 8 pages of b&w photos not seen by PW.Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Booklist
The anthrax coda to 9/11 was a frightening harbinger of the insidiousness of large-scale bioterror. This account builds on original reporting by its author, a Washington Post editor. Thompson interviewed survivors as well as microbiologists assigned the task of identifying what caused illness and deaths in the wake of the attacks. The upshot of Thompson's narrative is that agencies, the FBI in particular, responded poorly to the crisis, but whatever her assessment of the government's performance, Thompson mainly focuses on a blow-by-blow account of the anthrax episodes of fall 2001. She spares no medical detail on what anthrax does, presenting its course of symptoms as experienced by postal workers in the Washington, D.C., area and victims in Florida and New York. Thompson gives no quarter to the federal government's spin on the attacks, lending spice to what overall is a dispassionate, just-the-facts-ma'am narrative. That will be valuable to readers revisiting the federal health agencies' response to the anthrax attack, and worried about their competence in dealing with the next one. Gilbert Taylor
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved


Book Description

A lethal germ is unleashed in the U.S. mail. A chain of letters spreads terror from Florida to Washington, from New York to Connecticut, from the halls of the U.S. Congress to the assembly lines of the U.S. Postal Service. Five people die and ten thousand more line up for antibiotics to protect against exposure. A government already outsmarted by the terrorist hijackers of 9/11 stumbles, leaving workers vulnerable and a diabolical killer on the loose.

The Killer Strain is the definitive account of the year in which bioterrorism became a reality in the United States, exposing failures in judgment and a flawed understanding of the anthrax bacteria's capacity to kill. With the pace and drama of fiction, this book goes behind the scenes to examine the confused, often bungled response by federal agencies to the anthrax attacks of 2001. It shows how the Bush administration's efforts to control information and downplay risk led to mistakes that ultimately cost two postal workers their lives.

Based on hundreds of hours of interviews and a review of thousands of pages of government documents, The Killer Strain reveals unsung victims and heroes in the anthrax debacle. It also examines the FBI's slow-paced investigation into the crimes and the unprecedented scientific challenges posed by the case. It looks into the coincidences of timing and geography that spurred the FBI's scrutiny of Dr. Steven J. Hatfill, a key "person of interest" for the authorities. Hatfill, a medical researcher turned "bioterror expert," proclaimed his innocence but spent most of 2002 under round-the-clock FBI surveillance.

The Killer Strain is more than a thrilling read. It is a clarion wake-up call. It shows how billions of dollarsspent and a decade of elaborate bioterror dress rehearsals meant nothing in the face of a real attack.


About the Author
Marilyn W. Thompson is an award-winning investigative reporter and editor who has devoted her career to exposing government scandal. She is currently Assistant Managing Editor for Investigations at the Washington Post, where her investigative team has won two Pulitzer Prizes for public service. She is the author of Feeding the Beast: How Wedtech Became the Most Corrupt Little Company in America and the co-author along with Jack Bass of Ol' Strom: An Unauthorized Biography of Strom Thurmond.

FROM OUR EDITORS

In the wake of 9/11/01, a lethal chain of letters containing anthrax spores unleashed a reign of terror across the Eastern Seaboard of the United States. In this sobering account of the first American bioterrorist attack, Washington Post editor Marilyn W. Thompson relates the known details of the still-unsolved case (to this day, no one has conclusively identified the person or persons responsible) and assesses the Bush administration's woefully inadequate response to the threat. A cautionary tale filled with heroes and villains, breakthroughs and blunders, The Killer Strain explains what went wrong -- and why. It also tells us what we need to know￯﾿ﾽfor next time.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

A lethal germ is unleashed in the U.S. mail. A chain of letters spreads terror from Florida to Washington, from New York to Connecticut, from the halls of the U.S. Congress to the assembly lines of the U.S. Postal Service. Five people die and ten thousand more line up for antibiotics to protect against exposure. A government already outsmarted by the terrorist hijackers of 9/11 stumbles, leaving workers vulnerable and a diabolical killer on the loose. The Killer Strain is the definitive account of the year in which bioterrorism became a reality in the United States, exposing failures in judgment and a flawed understanding of the anthrax bacteria's capacity to kill. With the pace and drama of fiction, this book goes behind the scenes to examine the confused, often bungled response by federal agencies to the anthrax attacks of 2001. It shows how the Bush administration's efforts to control information and downplay risk led to mistakes that ultimately cost two postal workers their lives.

Based on hundreds of hours of interviews and a review of thousands of pages of government documents, The Killer Strain reveals unsung victims and heroes in the anthrax debacle. It also examines the FBI's slow-paced investigation into the crimes and the unprecedented scientific challenges posed by the case. It looks into the coincidences of timing and geography that spurred the FBI's scrutiny of Dr. Steven J. Hatfill, a key "person of interest" for the authorities. Hatfill, a medical researcher turned "bioterror expert," proclaimed his innocence but spent most of 2002 under round-the-clock FBI surveillance. The Killer Strain is more than a thrilling read. It is a clarion wake-up call. It shows how billions of dollars spent and a decade of elaborate bioterror dress rehearsals meant nothing in the face of a real attack.

FROM THE CRITICS

The Denver Post

Readers looking for the identity of the perpetrator (or perpetrators) will be disappointed. Thompson is no sensationalist, so she stays away from unsubstantiated accusations and irresponsible speculation.

Readers who look for an overarching lesson should be satisfied, however. It sounds something like this: Despite extensive government and private-sector planning for terrorist attacks, despite the "bumbling responses" in late 2001, it is difficult to anticipate everything, and difficult to halt even what has been anticipated. In fairness to policymakers criticized in the wake of the deaths, who could have grasped what would occur when anthrax-laced envelopes passed through the U.S. mail system? — Steve Weinberg

Publishers Weekly

In a medical mystery that has the tension and pace of Richard Preston's The Hot Zone but lacks its satisfying sense of closure, Washington Post investigative reporter Thompson recounts the events surrounding the anthrax attacks of late 2001. Though she alludes to possible connections between the weaponized anthrax found in several letters and al-Qaida (as well as domestic scientists), Thompson's story is more about the successes and failures of the public health process than a whodunit. Ranging from the Florida offices of American Media Inc. to the halls of Congress, she uses extensive interviews to describe the behind-the-scenes responses to the appearance of anthrax-filled envelopes in the U.S. mail. What emerges isn't so harsh a condemnation as the title indicates, but rather a portrait of scientists, doctors, politicians and law enforcement officials, all trying to defuse a biological crisis while working within conflicting institutional traditions. While she valorizes the scientists working to identify the sources of the seemingly disconnected anthrax cases, Thompson seems most interested in the postal workers who were put at risk-unnecessarily, she says-in the course of their day-to-day jobs. She begins and ends with the story of Leroy Richmond, who inhaled aerosolized anthrax spores while working at the Brentwood postal facility in Washington, D.C., but survived the infection, and Thompson's book is ultimately a tribute to him and the other postal workers who were victims of what she concludes was "a preventable industrial accident exacerbated by a series of government blunders and bad judgments." 8 pages of b&w photos not seen by PW. Agent, Gail Ross. (May 1) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews