Crisis Averted

“The book is an attempt not just to highlight and celebrate hidden successes but also to prepare for the next outbreak, and the one after that. The stakes could not be more important.”—New Republic

“Rivers manages to convey a sense of hope, courage, and desire to fortify public systems… The book will leave readers with a sense of the challenges, excitement, and potential of this field.”—Science

“Readers should come away from Crisis Averted with a better comprehension of what public health does and why it is such a crucial endeavor.” —The Washington Post

“Crisis Averted is Ms. Rivers’s ambitious and…successful attempt to reset our relationship with the field of public health. With a judicious blend of candor, hopefulness and pragmatism, she calls out its mistakes, reminds us of its historic accomplishments and emphasizes the need for the discipline to adjust its strategies if its full promise is to be realized.”—Wall Street Journal

“Few public health leaders have been as prophetic as Caitlin Rivers. She has been at the forefront of identifying the risks we face from pathogens, foretelling outbreaks, and guiding our responses with remarkable foresight. In Crisis Averted, Rivers offers a masterclass in how we can pinpoint and prevent health crises before they spiral out of control and use the tools of public health to reduce suffering from disease.”—Scott Gottlieb, M.D., author of Uncontrolled Spread

“During the COVID-19 pandemic, Caitlin Rivers became one of our most trusted voices in public health. Now her goal ‘is to make the threads of public health visible in the fabric of our lives.’ Through fascinating stories paired with compelling insights, she succeeds remarkably. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in public health—which should be all of us by now.”—Sandeep Jauhar, New York Times bestselling author of Heart and My Father’s Brain

“I’ve known for several years now that Caitlin Rivers is one of the most inspiring practitioners of—and advocates for—public health in the United States. But reading Crisis Averted made it clear to me that she was also a gifted storyteller. With powerful narratives and hard-won expertise from her work on the frontlines of the COVID crisis, Rivers shines essential light on the often invisible ways that public health protects us all.” —Steven Johnson, author of The Ghost Map and Extra Life

“Digging into little-known successes and underappreciated failures, Crisis Averted makes a powerful and persuasive case for how societies can get better at responding to disease threats. A must read for anyone interested in public health.”—Adam Kucharski, author of The Rules of Contagion