Happy Hipppie Book Review (October 2001) – Just a Couple of Days by Tony Vigorito
This new novel with the tantalizing plot, “to remove the plague of economic devastation and human suffering from the annals of warfare” is a welcome diversion from our recent tragedies and concerns about biological warfare. The oxymoronic concept, “war cannot be helped, but it can be peaceful,” is rendered possible by a genetically engineered, “Pied Piper Virus.” The virus causes an infected person to lose his entire ability to use and understand language, any words, or “shared symbols.” A molecular biologist, Dr. Fountain, is hired to developed a vaccine by a small committee, headed by General Kiljoy who has taken on the virus as a personal mission.
The philosophical Dr. Fountain takes the reader through streams of consciousness, touching many life topics, as he progresses from research on the vaccine, virtual prisoner in an air-tight lab with the committee, and finally escaping to the outside where the world has succumb to the virus. The thought provoking ending is worth reading more than once as germ warfare is taken in an unexpected, optimistic direction.
