I’m looking for an engaging nonfiction book about the history of a disease. There was a documentary about typhoid fever I watched a while back about Mary Mallon that was interesting for example.
For context, I’m an ER nurse that enjoys learning about medicine/medical history and anatomy/physiology.
Thanks!
by Megapug10
11 Comments
And the Band Played On by Randy Stilts
The Hot Zone
The great influenza by John Barry. It was a very strange read at the beginning of the pandemic. It’s about the 1918 flu epidemic.
Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Human Pandemic by David Quammen
Tuberculosis: the Greatest Story Never Told. Somewhat tedious but holy moly, heck of a story.
The Emperor of All Maladies by Siddhartha Mukherjee, about cancer
Emperor of Maladies by Siddhartha Mukherjee. A biography of cancer
Polio: An American Story by David Oshinsky
My Own Country by Abraham Vergese. It is about an immigrant infectious disease doctor who is working in the south at the beginning of the aids crisis. It is so well written and an interesting perspective. One of my all time favorites.
Pathogenesis: A History of the World in 8 Plagues by Jonathan Kennedy
The Immortal Life of Henrietta-Lacks
Its about the woman who’s cells were used to cure polio