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kwheeles's review
3.0
Good history of the 1918 influenza pandemic from a social science point of view.
caroparr's review
The focus on how the flu affected WWI was interesting, the lengthy statistical analysis not so much. He does make the point that the reason contemporary literature did not have much to say about the flu could be that the carnage of WWI overpowered disease in the experiences and imaginations of most people.
transtwill's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
3.5
notes at the end of each chapter rather than at end of book are probably an ‘in theory’ useful organisation choice, but not very compatible with screen reader use since long lists of dense citations are difficult to parse.
courtenymorehouse's review against another edition
3.0
This was quite dry but worth a read in our current predicament. I particularly enjoyed the passage about San Francisco protests of masks and business closures. One complaint “they fog up your spectacles”. History repeats...
Topline fact: 500,000 people died during this pandemic
Topline fact: 500,000 people died during this pandemic
bfields352's review against another edition
3.0
This is a pretty good historical book on the Spanish influenza in 1918. It was pretty easy to read for the most part. But there were some boring parts and a lot of statistics that at times left me reeling and my head spinning. But overall there was a lot of things I hadn’t heard about before.
amandag's review
informative
slow-paced
3.5
Well researched and includes lots of data. It can be a bit slow and outdated, but it does a great job of pulling out examples and areas to explain the 1918 pandemic in relation to World War 1 and medicine of the time.
laurenvdb's review
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
This book was written in the 1970s so some of the vocabulary choices are out of date. The content warnings aren't ready yet but I will update it later.
The author uses the term e*kimo frequently in the chapter on Alaska
The author uses the term e*kimo frequently in the chapter on Alaska
Content Warnings
Minor: Medical content and Racial slurs
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