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piscesfilms's review against another edition
2.0
This was an interesting overview of epidemiology and public health work with HIV, especially coming from someone who actively participated in this work. I also liked reading about her opinion on the connection between journalism and epidemiology. I really valued her emphasis on the importance of qualitative data, which is often undervalued by epidemiologist.
However, this book felt dated and even offensive at times. The footnotes & the sarcasm rarely amused me. There were a lot of instances in this book that reminded me that a lot of public health workers assume that their participation in work with certain communities or certain issues somehow gives them the authority or special privileges. For example, there was one part in the text where the author uses a lot of slurs that are not hers to reclaim, and then recognizes that some might be offended by this in the footnotes of the text and apologies. If you recognize that it’s not your place, why include such things anyways? Working with these groups that you do not identify with does not give you any authority or special privileges to reclaim things that aren’t for you.
That is just one small example but there were several similar instances of this throughout the text, which made it feel dated to me. And while it might seem nit-picky, I think it’s important for public health workers to educate themselves of this and become aware of such things. It’s part of the effort to decolonize public health.
However, this book felt dated and even offensive at times. The footnotes & the sarcasm rarely amused me. There were a lot of instances in this book that reminded me that a lot of public health workers assume that their participation in work with certain communities or certain issues somehow gives them the authority or special privileges. For example, there was one part in the text where the author uses a lot of slurs that are not hers to reclaim, and then recognizes that some might be offended by this in the footnotes of the text and apologies. If you recognize that it’s not your place, why include such things anyways? Working with these groups that you do not identify with does not give you any authority or special privileges to reclaim things that aren’t for you.
That is just one small example but there were several similar instances of this throughout the text, which made it feel dated to me. And while it might seem nit-picky, I think it’s important for public health workers to educate themselves of this and become aware of such things. It’s part of the effort to decolonize public health.
bookgardendc's review against another edition
4.0
For anyone interested in better understanding what I do, this is a great read. You'll learn a lot and even come away understanding epidemiology, and also see some of the complexities about AIDS that most people don't even consider.
laurenkimoto's review against another edition
challenging
funny
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
elleha's review
An interesting topic from an interesting perspective I'm sure but it starts with several pages moaning about inclusivity in language and there are several smug little footnotes like "I know some people are offended by these words but I'm going to use them anyway :)". As an epidemiologist she should know anal sex is the risk factor, not men (later males) who have sex with men, which is easier and means you don't have to annoying refer to trans women as "males".
reginacattus's review against another edition
4.0
Although it was a little repetitive at times, this book was highly informative and entertaining. It was really interesting to learn a bit more about the management of HIV and AIDS across the world. It also covered a little of the mechanisms of HIV and AIDS themselves, along with epidemeology and the statistics that go along with it, something that I find quite fascinating. It was also rather amusing to guess what her next complaint at the system or the foibles of statistics would be. There are some rather shocking figures in there, outdated as they may be. This book has really challenged me to think differently, usually finishing up with me agreeing with her because her evidence is just too solid to effectively argue against.
HIV is everywhere, so we mustn't let our cultural reluctance to talk about prostitution and waria, homosexuality and drugs. Only when you talk about it, and talk about it with the people that matter can you be sure to formulate a genuinely successful treatment plan. HIV and AIDS may be far closer to being under control now than ever before, but that certainly doesn't mean we should take that for granted. We must learn our lessons from how it got out of hand before to keep it and other such diseases from re-surging.
So pick up this book in your local library and just flick through it a bit until you find her excellent summary of the problems and how to fix them. If your interest is piqued, why not give it a proper read. Sometimes repetition is needed to stress the facts.
HIV is everywhere, so we mustn't let our cultural reluctance to talk about prostitution and waria, homosexuality and drugs. Only when you talk about it, and talk about it with the people that matter can you be sure to formulate a genuinely successful treatment plan. HIV and AIDS may be far closer to being under control now than ever before, but that certainly doesn't mean we should take that for granted. We must learn our lessons from how it got out of hand before to keep it and other such diseases from re-surging.
So pick up this book in your local library and just flick through it a bit until you find her excellent summary of the problems and how to fix them. If your interest is piqued, why not give it a proper read. Sometimes repetition is needed to stress the facts.
inkocean's review against another edition
3.0
Pisani is insightful and acerbic in her evaluation of the international HIV/AIDS machine. Some portions of the book dragged a bit, but the heart and soul of Wisdom of Whores cuts to the heart of barriers people face in preventing HIV. The great strength of this work is that she pulls readers back to the root of HIV/AIDS, which is 95%+ sex and drugs. If politicians and policy makers spoke openly and honestly about these topics, then HIV/AIDS probably would wither away within several generations.
She spends 300+ pages building her case, but in the end she fits all of her recommendations onto 3 pages and you really feel that those 3 pages could save the world. Despite the international, multi-billion dollar machine that is the HIV/AIDS aid network, if we talked more honestly about safe sex and drug use, HIV/AIDS doesn't spread.
She spends 300+ pages building her case, but in the end she fits all of her recommendations onto 3 pages and you really feel that those 3 pages could save the world. Despite the international, multi-billion dollar machine that is the HIV/AIDS aid network, if we talked more honestly about safe sex and drug use, HIV/AIDS doesn't spread.
nunom's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book. If you're interested in a first person account of how it felt like to work for epidemiology groups during the peak of the AIDS epidemic, you should give this book a shot.
Elizabeth Pisani is intelligent, funny, and above all honest. She is not shy to mention the successes that she and the organisms she has worked for have had, but she is humble enough to admit the failures. She also explains why some of the failures were purely due to human error (which is unavoidable), or due to the intrusion of strong political and/or religious ideologies during a decision-making process that should rely on the most objective analysis possible.
Pisani addresses the problems with gathering epidemiology data regarding indicators apparently as simple as the people infected with HIV, or how the infection proceeds from these people to new hosts. She explains why policies should be precisely targeting these risk groups, instead of the naïve, albeit more palatable, "general population". She also explains why our unease with dealing with the traditionally "weirdos" of society has prevented some countries to put in place effective policies aiming at stopping or slowing the progression of the HIV infection.
All in all, a great book.
Elizabeth Pisani is intelligent, funny, and above all honest. She is not shy to mention the successes that she and the organisms she has worked for have had, but she is humble enough to admit the failures. She also explains why some of the failures were purely due to human error (which is unavoidable), or due to the intrusion of strong political and/or religious ideologies during a decision-making process that should rely on the most objective analysis possible.
Pisani addresses the problems with gathering epidemiology data regarding indicators apparently as simple as the people infected with HIV, or how the infection proceeds from these people to new hosts. She explains why policies should be precisely targeting these risk groups, instead of the naïve, albeit more palatable, "general population". She also explains why our unease with dealing with the traditionally "weirdos" of society has prevented some countries to put in place effective policies aiming at stopping or slowing the progression of the HIV infection.
All in all, a great book.