Why Albert Camus' classic novel 'The Plague' is a must-read in these pandemic times

French writer Albert Camus's book 'The Plague' (Die Pest, La Peste) is put out for delivery at the Uslar & Rai Bookshop in Berlin recently. Sales of this 1947 novel have been spiking since the pandemic outbreak worldwide. Photo: AFP

Some weeks ago, I got an email from a student who had returned to Northern Italy over Christmas to see family.

Unable to return to Australia, they were in lockdown. The hospitals were filling up fast, as Covid-19 began to spiral out of control. Sales of Albert Camus’ 1947 novel The Plague (La Peste) were spiking. Everyone was buying it.