AS BRIGHT AS HEAVEN by
Susan Meissner
In 1918 there was the Spanish Flu. It was devastating.
Millions died. This is the story of how one ordinary family was affected.
The Bright family chooses to move to Philadelphia where they
will take over the family mortuary just as the Great War and the Spanish Flu
descend upon the city. Thomas and
Pauline and their three daughters, Evie, Maggie and Willa, take up residence
and intend to have a better life than tobacco farmers. The victims of the flu upend their plans as the
mortuary fills and then is inundated with bodies. Disease strikes every family even as the war
takes away the young men.
This picture of how a family and a city is changed, gives a
realistic picture of medicine and funerary practices as well as family life in
a middle class family. Well written and researched, the book is compelling even
as Corona 19 claims lives today.
5 of 5 stars
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