A review by uberbutter
Black Death at the Golden Gate: The Race to Save America from the Bubonic Plague by David K. Randall

adventurous informative reflective fast-paced

5.0

In the early 20th century the Bubonic plague would make its way to the US via ship. People started dying and it was a race to get it under control because pandemics aren't fun. People panicked, scientists hurried to find the cause, racism was rampant against the Asian population (Chinatown was a big hub for the illness), people refused to take precautions, and some straight up thought it was a conspiracy theory and laughed at it all. Proving that people were just as big jackasses 120 years ago as they can be today. Even in recent years the plague is still present in the US but in very small numbers and is often curable because yay science and medicine!!

This is a fascinating, well researched, well written history book. I was sucked in from the beginning. It only took me a couple days to cruise through Black Death at the Golden Gate and I learned about a part of history I didn't know much about which I personally find fun. Worth the read if you enjoy the popular history genre.