Catharine Arnold

Books: History | Medicine

Pandemic 1918: Eyewitness Accounts from the Greatest Medical Holocaust in Modern History (2018)

This is a look at the 1918 pandemic from the stories of those who died and survived.

Some of the bits I liked. Especially the more esoteric bits.

(A)n accident of chemistry meant that the lead dramatically slowed the decay of Sir Mark's soft tissue, giving scientists investigating the H5N1 'bird flu' virus.

And how much science progressed in just a few years.

In 2011, there were only five useful samples of the H1N1 virus around the world.

Although there were bits I learned, there wasn't much new here. And my interest is in the science, so the personal records ended up being bits I mostly skimmed.

So this book is probably meant for someone else.

Publisher: St. Martin's Press

Rating: 6/10