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4.3 AVERAGE
4.3 AVERAGE
informative
reflective
medium-paced
informative
fast-paced
informative
reflective
slow-paced
A very easy read, which is a strength of Michael Lewis. His writing always seems very casual and conversational. It's tempted me to read the John Barry book about the 1918 pandemic though I'm afraid that ne be a much heavier lift and drier.
I found the 1st 1/3 to 1/2 fascinating, when it focused on the key individuals and their backgrounds who came together later. That said, maybe it's the skeptic in me but it also felt a little "too perfect" at times when it came to fitting a narrative. I did find criticisms frim legit sources on Twitter as far as accuracy around some claims in the book (which were pretty interesting on their own).
The last 1/3 was probably the hardest to get through, maybe because it was a little depressing in describing the pandemic response (and likely ties into The Fifth Risk, which has been on my list for sometime).
I found the 1st 1/3 to 1/2 fascinating, when it focused on the key individuals and their backgrounds who came together later. That said, maybe it's the skeptic in me but it also felt a little "too perfect" at times when it came to fitting a narrative. I did find criticisms frim legit sources on Twitter as far as accuracy around some claims in the book (which were pretty interesting on their own).
The last 1/3 was probably the hardest to get through, maybe because it was a little depressing in describing the pandemic response (and likely ties into The Fifth Risk, which has been on my list for sometime).
This is about half the story that I hoped Lewis would tell. Really, it focuses on a few key individuals, when the pandemic window was much, much greater. But it's also a thrillingly told history that, true to Lewis' previous works, focuses on the figures who don't make the news, but who shape it for better or for worse.
informative
slow-paced
There is a lot to learn about epidemiology and the American public health systems from this book.
The Premonition is positioned as a nonfiction medical thriller. But to get the thrills Lewis hard casts the characters as heroic or villianous. There's little complexity in motivation or analysis. There are ZERO references and discussion of sources. Was this based on interviews of Charity Dean and Carter Mecher?
Lewis threw in a very vague and brief disclosure about Charity Dean at the end. I didn't get the point of that at all. Was he trying to prove that he had the insiders info?
Think of this as politicized opinion and enjoy it.
The Premonition is positioned as a nonfiction medical thriller. But to get the thrills Lewis hard casts the characters as heroic or villianous. There's little complexity in motivation or analysis. There are ZERO references and discussion of sources. Was this based on interviews of Charity Dean and Carter Mecher?
Lewis threw in a very vague and brief disclosure about Charity Dean at the end. I didn't get the point of that at all. Was he trying to prove that he had the insiders info?
Think of this as politicized opinion and enjoy it.
Checks a lot of boxes for me. Behind the scenes. Female courage in action. Validation in premonitions. Non fiction story telling.
Ode to the courage and technical abilities of the many public health officials, doctors and scientists who tried to warn and then mitigate the spread of the pandemic in the US, in the midst of the many systematic, bureaucratic and political failures. Inspiring, infuriating and depressing all at the same time. Two (minor) quibbles: some parts felt more dramatized than needed; no mention of the amazing work done by the Seattle group including Helen Chu and Trevor Bedford.