Historical fiction book · Curated
The Last Town on Earth
Thomas Mullen · historical fiction
A mill town quarantines itself against the 1918 flu (SAH Prize 2007).
About this historical novel
The Last Town on Earth by Thomas Mullen is historical fiction set around 1918 in the World War I era period with key settings including Washington State, United States. A mill town quarantines itself against the 1918 flu (SAH Prize 2007).
On HisFic we tag it under 1. Literary historical fiction and 5. Military & war so you can pair it with similar story types. Recurring themes include plague, community, and war. It also appears on our prize-winner shelf—useful if you like critically recognized historical novels.
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Plot summary
A mill town quarantines itself against the 1918 flu (SAH Prize 2007).
Awards
- ★ Society of American Historians Prize for Historical Fiction · 2007 (winner)
Biennial US prize (formerly James Fenimore Cooper Prize) for historical fiction on an American subject.
Subgenres
Eras
Browse this mix
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On the Italian front in World War I, American ambulance driver Frederic Henry falls in love with British nurse Catherine Barkley as the Caporetto retreat unravels the army around them. Hemingway’s 1929 novel is Great War historical fiction stripped to weather, wounds, and a private peace that cannot hold.
- Remember Ben Clayton · Stephen Harrigan
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- The Women · Kristin Hannah
A young American nurse serves in Vietnam and struggles to be seen when she comes home.
- The Alice Network · Kate Quinn
In 1947 a pregnant American college student hunts for a missing Frenchwoman and collides with Eve Gardiner, a damaged veteran of a real World War I spy ring. Dual timelines braid the Alice Network’s 1915 missions in occupied France with a postwar reckoning.
Regions & places
North America
Washington State · United States
Themes
- plague
- community
- war
Tags
award-winner