Librería Portfolio

Two of America´s leading national security experts offer a definitive account of the global impact of COVID-19 and the political shock waves it will have on the United States and the world order in the 21st Century.

´Informed by history, reporting, and a truly global perspective, this is an indispensable first draft of history and blueprint for how we can move forward.´
-- Ben Rhodes

The COVID-19 pandemic killed millions, infected hundreds of millions, and laid bare the deep vulnerabilities and inequalities of our interconnected world. The accompanying economic crash was the worst since the Great Depression, with the International Monetary Fund estimating that it will cost over $22 trillion in global wealth over the next few years. Over two decades of progress in reducing extreme poverty was erased, just in the space of a few months. Already fragile states in every corner of the globe were further hollowed out. The brewing clash between the United States and China boiled over and the worldwide contest between democracy and authoritarianism deepened. It was a truly global crisis necessitating a collective response--and yet international cooperation almost entirely broke down, with key world leaders hardly on speaking terms.

Colin Kahl and Thomas Wright´s Aftershocks offers a riveting and comprehensive account of one of the strangest and most consequential years on record. Drawing on interviews with officials from around the world and extensive research, the authors tell the story of how nationalism and major power rivalries constrained the response to the worst pandemic in a century. They demonstrate the myriad ways in which the crisis exposed the limits of the old international order and how the reverberations from COVID-19 will be felt for years to come.



Table of Contents:

Prologue: The ´Fuck This´ Moment

Part 1: The Last Pandemic and the Collapse of International Order

Chap. 1: The Great War, the Great Influenza, and Great Ambitions for World Order

Chap. 2: Ripples Through Time

Chap. 3: Primed for Peril

Part II: International Crisis, National Responses

Chap 4: Origin Story

Chap. 5: Opportunities Lost

Chap. 6: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Part III: New World Disorder

Chap. 7: Meltdown

Chap. 8: Vulnerable States, Vulnerable Peoples

Chap. 9: Conflict and Contagion

Chap. 10: Demagogues and Democracy

Chap. 11: Rights, Robots, and Resistance

Part IV: Conclusion and Recommendations

Chap. 12: Riding the (Second) Wave

Chap. 13: Fighting for a Better Future

Epilogue