Covid-19 and 100 days that transformed the world: the 17 April edition of the Guardian Weekly

This week our international news magazine considers how we even begin to process a period of such rapid and phenomenal global change.

Here in the United Kingdom we are – we hope – in the midst of the worst stages of the coronavirus outbreak. For some countries, the worst may be beginning to pass; for others, things may be about to darken further. The uncertainty is almost as discomfiting as our fears of the illness. Since the Weekly carried its first small report on the novel coronavirus on 10 January (“Respiratory contagion is not Sars, authorities say”) the world has changed in ways that few could have imagined possible.

Last week the Guardian ran a fascinating series of articles on the 100 days in which Covid-19 went from a small flicker in the world’s consciousness to the defining crisis of a generation. We’re pleased to feature a selection of them in this week’s edition of the Weekly. We begin with Jonathan Freedland’s analysis of how the disaster has unfolded in the UK and around the world – a change so fast we can barely grasp its scale. Our global environment editor Jonathan Watts considers the low-carbon, wildlife-friendly state we find ourselves in – and asks if we can find a way to make it last. Then, Guardian economics editor Larry Elliott looks at the speed in which the global economy was ravaged by the virus, and diplomatic editor Patrick Wintour considers the geopolitical winners and losers from the crisis.

Our Covid-19 analysis continues with a look at why the virus has been so effective at targeting the poor in the United States – now the world’s worst-hit country.

Then, in the UK, we look back at Boris Johnson’s week in hospital. Will his brush with mortality influence his famously cavalier outlook? We also report on the very un-Britishly efficient building of field hospitals and mortuaries in preparation for the worst weeks of the virus. We’re also looking at the latest science, lessons on immunology and much more throughout the magazine, including a brilliant read by the food writer Bee Wilson about the psychology behind stockpiling food in a crisis.

As you’d expect, Covid-19 is affecting almost everything that’s happening on the planet at the moment. However, we’re keen to make sure there’s more than just the virus in the magazine. This week we have a beautiful feature from the Guardian’s US team by Chris Sweeney about a golden eagle and the mystery surrounding its death. In our culture pages, rock critic Alexis Petridis meets the Strokes ahead of their sixth album and finds a band who have finally come out of their shell (a bit).

Andrew Male meets the woman who makes eerily affecting collages from plastic detritus washed in from the sea – and, in books, we round up the best new (and old) books for kids stuck indoors. Enjoy, and see you next week. Stay safe.