Wonder Drug

The Secret History of Thalidomide in America and Its Hidden Victims

By: Jennifer Vanderbes

Narrated by: Jennifer Vanderbes

Length: 10 hrs and 10 mins

Publisher's summary

“A shocking saga of pharmaceutical malpractice . . . Wonder Drug is both a first-rate medical thriller and the searing account of a forgotten American tragedy.”—Patrick Radden Keefe, author of Empire of Pain

A “fascinating and compassionate” (People) account of the most notorious drug of the twentieth century and the never-before-told story of its American survivors.

Longlisted for the Andrew Carnegie Medal

In 1959, a Cincinnati pharmaceutical firm, the William S. Merrell Company, quietly began distributing samples of an exciting new wonder drug already popular around the world. Touted as a sedative without risks, thalidomide was handed out freely, under the guise of clinical trials, by doctors who believed approval by the Food and Drug Administration was imminent.

But in 1960, when the application for thalidomide landed on the desk of FDA medical reviewer Frances Kelsey, she quickly grew suspicious. When she learned that the drug was causing severe birth abnormalities abroad, she and a team of dedicated doctors, parents, and journalists fought tirelessly to block its authorization in the United States and stop its sale around the world.

Jennifer Vanderbes set out to write about this FDA success story only to discover a sinister truth that had been buried for decades: For more than five years, several American pharmaceutical firms had distributed unmarked thalidomide samples in shoddy clinical trials, reaching tens of thousands of unwitting patients, including hundreds of pregnant women.

As Vanderbes examined government and corporate archives, probed court records, and interviewed hundreds of key players, she unearthed an even more stunning find: Scores of Americans had likely been harmed by the drug. Deceived by the pharmaceutical firms, betrayed by doctors, and ignored by the government, most of these Americans had spent their lives unaware that thalidomide had caused their birth defects.

Now, for the first time, this shocking episode in American history is brought to light. Wonder Drug gives voice to the unrecognized victims of this epic scandal and exposes the deceptive practices of Big Pharma that continue to endanger lives today.

©2023 Jennifer Vanderbes (P)2023 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“A story with real heroes—and real villains. Wonder Drug will leave you grateful for strong-minded scientists and epidemiology nerds—people who actually take the time to look at the data—and for dedicated pediatricians, parents who won’t take no for an answer and curious, persistent, investigative journalists like Vanderbes who can follow even long-buried and carefully hidden stories that need to be told.”—The Washington Post

“What really took place in the U.S. in the early 1960s was much more harrowing than we remember, as Jennifer Vanderbes makes clear in her riveting new book . . . Vanderbes tells her story with verve, power, and empathy, adding weight by interpolating the stories of victims throughout, and coming back to them at length toward the book’s conclusion.”—Harvard Public Health Magazine

“Jennifer Vanderbes’s deft and thorough Wonder Drug maps the thalidomide tragedy. The action shifts from one country to the next in the manner of a John le Carré thriller. Coming hot on the heels of a documentary, it is hoped the U.S. government will own up to its errors and ensure recognition and adequate support for the survivors—the group estimate they number around 100—whose bodies were literally test beds for modern drug safety.”—The Globe and Mail

Could not stop listening. Except to wipe away tears.

As the older brother of one of the Thalidomide survivors mention in the book, I listened to this gripping and thoroughly researched book with a mixture of tears and initial disbelief that often transformed into anger. If you think hardly any were affected by Thalidomide in the US, you are wrong. If you think the pharmaceutical company practices that led to this tragedy were stopped in the last century, you are wrong. If you think that all survivors have been supported, acknowledged and compensated for those practices, you are wrong.

This author reveals and documents truths that the FDA to this day will not publicly admit. It also paints a set of deeply personal portraits of these amazing people who have been ignored and erased from history for far too long. This book is an illuminating and gripping read. It has been the one book this summer I rarely put down. Except to wipe away tears.

A Must!

This was a compelling and enthralling listen! The story, composition, and delivery made this a ‘can’t stop listening’ for me. The U.S. survivors need to be recognized - I hope this book pushes this forward!

A gripping true story of a fight against evil

It took nearly 60 years for a gifted investigative journalist to finish the work Frances Kelsey started in 1961. Powerful executives and government leaders buried their roles in this International tragedy until Jennifer Vanderbes came along and exposed them all. Read it, share it, vow to do your part to never let anything like this happen again.

Great Unknown Story

It’s not a well known story and the issues still apply today.

Needed a different narrator, though. She sometimes (often) falls into a sing-song cadence and makes it hard to focus on what she’s saying.

Extremely thought provoking!

Astounding research presented in true stories - makes you wonder what truly goes on with big pharmaceutical even today!

well worth the time

This book is a winner on all fronts. Compelling story, not well known; an easy-to-listen-to narration; and an easy to follow story line.

Author too attached

When she gets excited while reading bc she takes too fast; different narrator would have been less distracting