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greatgreyowl's review against another edition
emotional
informative
sad
medium-paced
4.0
Not for anyone with a weak stomach.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pandemic/Epidemic
tmvallehoag's review against another edition
3.0
Very good read in the wake of COVID. Interesting in the way it examines public health infrastructure’s role in the future. I’d love to read the post-COVID edition.
zimmm's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
3.25
Another interesting nonfiction book that gets a little bit lost on side tangents, but the immediate story of Snow and Whitehall was very interesting and the epilogue sobering reading it nearly twenty years later and post covid.
gardenofejw's review against another edition
5.0
Interesting and well-told! Listened to the audiobook, which I think helped for some parts that were a little slower or repetitive. But I loved the story of Snow and Whitehead and trying to prove the hypothesis of the cholera source.
Also would love to see a post-pandemic update given all his commentary in the epilogue haha.
Also would love to see a post-pandemic update given all his commentary in the epilogue haha.
amjammi's review against another edition
2.0
A bit overdramatized, almost like a History Channel special.
livres_de_bloss's review against another edition
4.0
I’m giving this 4.5 stars with the caveat that one doesn’t read the epilogue.
This book is phenomenal! Such a detailed and engaging snapshot of the devastating cholera outbreak of 1854. The book is highly readable and tells the story in a linear fashion. I really enjoyed the medical sections on how cholera actually works inside the body and how the virus can mutate. It’s all pretty frightening yet fascinating.
My only complaint with the body of the book is the constant banging on about miasma. We got it the first time. It doesn’t need to be mentioned in every subsequent section. We see how loopy it is from the onset.
The epilogue, on the other hand, was odd. It was a lot of fear-mongering and sensationalism. It was almost 30 pages of speculation that was only very loosely related to the book at all. I don’t know why it was put in this excellent book; it kind of made me question the author’s credibility and ends the book on a tremendously weak note.
I recommend this book to everyone. We can all learn something! Just don’t bother with the epilogue.
This book is phenomenal! Such a detailed and engaging snapshot of the devastating cholera outbreak of 1854. The book is highly readable and tells the story in a linear fashion. I really enjoyed the medical sections on how cholera actually works inside the body and how the virus can mutate. It’s all pretty frightening yet fascinating.
My only complaint with the body of the book is the constant banging on about miasma. We got it the first time. It doesn’t need to be mentioned in every subsequent section. We see how loopy it is from the onset.
The epilogue, on the other hand, was odd. It was a lot of fear-mongering and sensationalism. It was almost 30 pages of speculation that was only very loosely related to the book at all. I don’t know why it was put in this excellent book; it kind of made me question the author’s credibility and ends the book on a tremendously weak note.
I recommend this book to everyone. We can all learn something! Just don’t bother with the epilogue.
kenziebrown's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
relaxing
medium-paced
2.5
janiebee's review against another edition
3.0
While I found the parts of this book which discussed cholera to be interesting and informative I have two complaints about the book generally. First, the author tended to wander off topic at will from items like anesthesia to nuclear war. Secondly, I felt hit over the head with his political agenda.