Joseph Nocera and Bethany McLean

In 2020, the coronavirus pandemic made it painfully clear that governments across the world could not adequately protect their citizens. Millions of people suffered and died in just two years, while administrations around the globe blundered; prize-winning economists overlooked devastating trade-offs from the collapse of trade; and elites escaped to isolated retreats, unaffected by - and worse, even profiting from - the worst healthcare crisis to hit humanity in decades.

In this page-turning economic, political and financial history, veteran journalists Bethany McClean and Joseph Nocera analyse the American response to the pandemic as a case study, to offer fresh and provocative answers. With laser-sharp reporting and deep sourcing, they investigate what really happened when governments ran out of PPE due to snarled supply chains; and the shock to the financial system when the world's biggest economies stumbled.