How to Survive a Pandemic: Graphic Novels and Books

Congratulations! You have made it this far and survived at least the first wave of a Global Pandemic. Now is the truly hard part, surviving the rest of humanity’s lackadaisical, almost negligent way of taking care of business. We even have those that have been deliberately spreading so much disinformation that the CDC and WHO had to build a myth-buster page to confront it.Â I am a pictures in a storybook guy,Â Â so I looked back at some related materials, and rated them by what tips that the CDC has put and WHO suggested policy out to include:

Avoid close contact; Clean and disinfect; Avoid close contact with people who are sick; Put distance between yourself and other people; Wear a facemask when you are around other people; Clean AND disinfect frequently touched surfaces daily; Clean your hands often, washing hands with soap and water

The Last Man by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (1826)
âˆš How to Protect Yourself
âˆš How to keep the virus from spreading
âˆš How to behave/considerations after infrastructure breaks down
Written by Mary Shelley, creator of Frankenstein, The novel“s narrator, Lionel Verney, tells the story of his life before and after becoming the Last Man: The only human remaining alive after plague sweeps the world. The plague in the novel is mysterious: No one can figure out what caused it, where it came from or how to cure it.

Writer: Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
Illustrated by: Caspar David Friedrich
Published by: Henry Colburn

Y-The-Last-Man (2002)
âˆš How to Protect Yourself
âˆš How to keep the virus from spreading
âˆš How to behave/considerations after infrastructure breaks down

With Elements similar to Shelley’s The Last Man, Poor Yorick just can’t stay out of trouble. In a world undergoing such upheaval, rioting, lawlessness, and overall disorder with half the world population suddenly deceased, as planes, trains, and automobiles become less convenient modes of travel than they otherwise might be, and food and medical supplies closely rationed.Â FX is teaming with Vaughan and Color Force’s Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson to develop the dystopian sci-fi comic as an ongoing series.

Writer: Brian K. Vaughan
Artist: Pia Guerra
Published by DC Comics / Vertigo

Lazaretto (2017)
âˆš How to Protect Yourself
âˆš How to keep the virus from spreading
âˆš How to behave/considerations after infrastructure breaks down

Part Lord of the Flies, more terrifying than Walking Dead because at least you can just kill the threat. Lazaretto is about a college campus that experiences an outbreak of the flu that evolves into hemorrhagic symptoms type . It“s sweeps across the campus ”“ and the world, it appears. At first just in a bunch of people coughing in the background. And then it almost immediately gets ramped up to apocalyptic levels with the college kids isolated and left to fend for themselves. The issue is a lot of set-up and a lot of stuff happens very quickly.

Written by Clay McLeod Chapman
Illustrated by Jey Levang
Published by Boom Studios

Port of Earth #11
”¢ How to Protect Yourself
âˆšHow to keep the virus from spreading
”¢ Survival Tips for After infrastructure breaks down
Finally, I picked this one because it hits a little closer to home, both symbolically and literally. A lot of the book focuses on an epidemic in Seattle as a particular neighborhood, which has been evacuated, is about to be bombed due to potential alien viral infection. There“s a group that are trying to rescue and hide some aliens on the run that may be patient zero, but there“s another one out there as well, all of which are being watched over. The planet’s alien business partners urge the Earth Security Agency to destroy Seattle in order to protect the planet from a deadly alien virus, covert agents scramble to uncover the truth about the outbreak’s origins. There’s a natural distrust by a chunk of the population and it“s little surprise that there“s a secret resistance going on, made more urgent by the fact that they“ve learned some of what“s gone on with other worlds where the plan did not go right. Amazon“s streaming service is working with Skybound Entertainment to develop the Image Comics series Port of Earth for a TV series.

Story: Zack Kapl an
Art: Andrea Mutti
Colors: Jordan Boyd
Letterer: Troy Pete

Stay aware of the latest information on the COVID-19 outbreak, available on the WHO website and through your national and local public health authority. Most people who become infected experience mild illness and recover, but it can be more severe for others. Take care of your health and protect others .