New York: Random House, (2006) dj. Hardcover first edition - The author's first novel, set against the backdrop of the 1918 flu epidemic and inspired by a little-known historical footnote regarding towns that quarantined themselves during that epidemic. Set in a fictional mill town in the forests of the Pacific Northwest called Commonwealth, one conceived as a haven for workers weary of exploitation. A world war is raging, and with the fear of spies rampant, the loyalty of all Americans is coming under scrutiny. When the town votes to quarantine itself against contagion, guards are posted at the single road leading in and out of town, and when a cold, hungry, tired and apparently ill soldier presents himself there begging for shelter, the shots that are fired, will reverberate throughout the town, imperiling both its values and its survival. Author's note. Recommended. 392 pp. ISBN: 978-1400065202.