Reading List for the Age of Epidemics
As we walk into the new year and the uncertain next phase of this once in a century pandemic, the last thing you may want to add to your resolutions list is reading books on emerging infections and the conditions that give rise to them. We here at CEID feel that a broader understanding of the dynamics that are making us vulnerable can give rise to sustainable change to the way we live, the policies we support, and the way we relate with the world around us.
With this in mind, we’ve curated some compelling books that provide insights into how and why we now live in an age of epidemics. Listed here, in no particular order, are some of our recommendations:
Spillover by David Quammen (2013) explores the phenomenon “in which a new pathogen comes to humans from wildlife,” known as spillover, and how such events are detected or come to our attention. The book provides an incredible perspective of the impact of emerging infectious diseases on our world.
The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert (2015) won the Pulitzer Prize and focuses on “why and how human beings have altered life on the planet in a way no species has before.” There have been five prior major extinction events on the surface of the Earth. We are living through the sixth, caused in large part during the “Anthropocene Era” by human activities and the resultant environmental changes, which in turn are leading to alarming loss of biodiversity.
Get Well Soon: History’s Worst Plagues and the Heroes Who Fought Them by Jennifer Wright (2017) “explores history’s most gripping and deadly outbreaks, and ultimately looks at the surprising ways they’ve shaped history and humanity for almost as long as anyone can remember.” The book provides an easy to read and sometimes humorous insight into how humans have approached and lived through prior plagues.
The Premonition: A Pandemic Story by Michael Lewis (2021) examines why we missed the early opportunities to stop the COVID-19 pandemic, and the story of those who predicted its impact (and were ignored at times).
Fevers, Feuds, and Diamonds: Ebola and the Ravages of History by Paul Farmer (2020) is about the 2013-2016 Ebola virus disease epidemic and “offers the first substantive account of this frightening, fast-moving episode and its implications.” Dr. Farmer provides a granular perspective of the challenges faced by those on the frontlines during this crisis as well as an analysis of international policy failures which worsened it. Lastly, the book provides a rich historical perspective of the region which lends context to the epidemic.
The Great Influenza: The Story of the Deadliest Pandemic in History by John M. Barry (2004) focuses on the 1918 eruption of “history’s most lethal influenza virus.” This tour de force is one of the definitive volumes describing how humans were shaped by, lived through, and finally survived past the 1918 influenza pandemic. The book also provides an incredible historical account of the scientific, medical and public health advances made during that period of global history.
Biography of Resistance: The Epic Battle Between People and Pathogens by CEID Faculty Muhammad H. Zaman (2020) “provides a chilling look at the rise of antibiotic-resistant superbugs, explaining how we got here and what we must do to address this growing global health crisis.” Dr. Zaman has decades of experience studying and responding to challenges posed by antibiotic resistance, including in some of the most resource limited settings in the world.
Big Chicken: The Incredible Story of How Antibiotics Created Modern Agriculture and Changed the Way the World Eats by Maryn McKenna (2017) “documents how antibiotics transformed chicken from local delicacy to industrial commodity—and human health threat—uncovering the ways we can make America’s favorite meat safer again.” From one of our favorite science journalists, Maryn McKenna personalizes the immense tragedy of antibiotic resistance through the story of those affected, and examines how we used antibiotics to increase food productivity, and how that in turn has resulted in antibiotic resistance which impacts our health, and threatens to undo the advances we have made in modern medicine.
And the Band Played On: Politics, People, and the AIDS Epidemic by Randy Shilts (1987) is an expose that “revealed why AIDS was allowed to spread unchecked during the early 80’s while the most trusted institutions ignored or denied the threat.” This book is a landmark account of how and why the growing HIV/AIDS crisis was ignored for so long in the United States, and how emerging infectious diseases take advantage of existing fault lines in our society, leading to further marginalization of those who are already socially disadvantaged. This book is also an incredible story of how a strong community of advocates, patients, doctors and scientists fought back against this apathy.
Governing Global Health: Who Runs the World and Why? by Chelsea Clinton and Devi Sridhar (2017) uses “principal-agent theory in which governments are the principals directing international agents of various type” to “take a closer look at two major PPPs-the Global Fund to Fight HIV/AIDS, TB and Malaria and the GAVI Alliance-and two major more traditional international organizations-the World Health Organization and the World Bank.” This summarizes the way sovereign nations, large funders and international organizations interact and cooperate to respond to global health issues, and where there are notable fractures in the current status quo, which can have an impact during pandemics.
Deadliest Enemy: Our War Against Killer Germs by Michael T. Osterholm and Mark Olshaker (2017) draws “on the latest medical science, case studies, policy research, and hard-earned epidemiological lessons” and “explores the resources and programs we need to develop if we are to keep ourselves safe from infectious disease.”
Outbreak Culture: The Ebola Crisis and the Next Epidemic by Pardis Sabeti & CEID Adjunct Faculty Lara Salahi (2018) “examines each phase of the 2014-16 Ebola epidemic — the largest and deadliest Ebola outbreak to date — and identifies the factors that complicated the response to the crisis. Through original research, critical interviews and shoe leather reporting, the book exposes a fractured system of global outbreak response in previous major infectious disease outbreaks and lays out guiding principles to shift the culture among international responders.” The paperback version, released in 2021, draw parallels to the COVID-19 pandemic response.
Vaccines Did Not Cause Rachel’s Autism: My Journey as a Vaccine Scientist, Pediatrician, and Autism Dad by Peter J. Hotez (2018) “provides evidence for the genetic basis of autism and illustrates how the neurodevelopmental pathways of autism are under way before birth. Dr. Hotez reminds readers of the many victories of vaccines over disease while warning about the growing dangers of the anti-vaccine movement, especially in the United States and Europe.” Dr. Hotez’s book reminds of the growing threat of the anti-vaxx movement towards maintaining our immunity against diseases we have already controlled.
Epidemics and Society: From the Black Death to the Present by Frank M. Snowden (2019) explores “the impact of epidemic diseases” and “ looks at how mass infectious outbreaks have shaped society, from the Black Death to today.” Snowden’s book examines how plagues affect not just societies who suffer through them but also our collective history.