Foreign Bodies: Pandemics, Vaccines, and the Health of Nations
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- Create Date：2023-12-10 16:21:48
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Simon Schama
- ISBN：B0BSVMVPM6
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Reviews
Greg
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A history of pandemics and how they were overcome。 Focuses on bubonic plague and cholera in the nineteenth century and draws parallels with covid 19。 Written during the covid 19 pandemic。 A central theme is the medical journey to discover vaccines and how personalities and nationalities and politics and petty jealousies can get in the way of effective treatment and how easily the scientist who makes a breakthrough can be either hero-worshipped or vilified or both。
Mmoreira
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Fascinating story of the difficulties microbiologist who develop vaccinations in getting approval from medical doctor societies and the political establishment， it ends with the parallel that Fauci had to deal with。
Kay
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Schama's elegant writing and passion for his topic make for a great read。 He also adroitly brings so much of this home to us， post-pandemic and in its duration。 Please read my blog review:https://missbatesreadsromance。com/202。。。Please note I received an e-galley of Foreign Bodies from Ecco， via Edelweiss+。 Schama's elegant writing and passion for his topic make for a great read。 He also adroitly brings so much of this home to us， post-pandemic and in its duration。 Please read my blog review:https://missbatesreadsromance。com/202。。。Please note I received an e-galley of Foreign Bodies from Ecco， via Edelweiss+。 。。。more
Izzy
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Foreign Bodies by Simon SchamaThis book， written during the COVID time， is a bit of a mish mash; in a preliminary chapter it raises these big current issues， which were underscored by the emergence of COVID （A。 B。 and C。; think particularly the ‘wet markets’ of Wuhan， where COVID was first recognized/spread…Despite the mish-mashness， it is such a superb historical document and so timely， that it needs to be awarded at least 4 stars，for how it gives a historic background for these major issues th Foreign Bodies by Simon SchamaThis book， written during the COVID time， is a bit of a mish mash; in a preliminary chapter it raises these big current issues， which were underscored by the emergence of COVID （A。 B。 and C。; think particularly the ‘wet markets’ of Wuhan， where COVID was first recognized/spread…Despite the mish-mashness， it is such a superb historical document and so timely， that it needs to be awarded at least 4 stars，for how it gives a historic background for these major issues that relate to the emergence of COVID and the difficult time we have had in controlling it。A。 Suburbanization， interaction between animals and people; loss of rain forests B。 Drumbeat of national tribalism vs bugle call of global peril C。 Cult of individualism vs urgencies of common interest Schama subsequently takes us on an historic tour that addresses the slow adoption of measures to could offer hope of limiting mortality/morbidity from the major pandemic diseases: smallpox， in the 18th century， and then， cholera and plague in the 19th and into the 20th century。There are heroes: Voltaire visa vis variolization against smallpox， Proust’s father Adrian Proust visa vis the adoption opf quaantine measures to control cholera， and most especially Mordechai Haffkine， who was a vaccinologist （mostly not recognized） par excellence， particularly as it relaes to plagueShama covers in early chapters the history of Smallpox control measures （known already in imperial China in the 15th century as documented in the Women of Lady Tan’s Court） variolization and Voltaire’s smallpox in 1723; abatement of smallpox mortality an exigency of maintaining dynastic continuity （Ottoman lands （and Chinese） were already doing this。）Scham goes next onto Adrian Prost’s recognition of how cholera spreads via vibrio， and recognition of need for international regulation at 11th international sanitation congress in Paris， 1903， （where he died following stroke）。Sanitation （Broad St pump） measures vs immunization Travel such as Haj and British commerce each helped spread Cholera in 19th century。 Opening of Suez canal helped spread cholera and plague。 Quarantine opposed by British for fear of impact on their commerce with India Vaccines against plague and cholera developed at Pasteur institute by Waldemar Haffkine， originally from Odessa…and possibly connected to Narodnaya Volya and Alexander Ii’s assassination 。He took the plague vaccine he developed himself in 1892Metchnikoff， a sponsor for Haffkine。。started in Kharkov; ontogenetic recapitulation of phylogeny recognized Koch identified Comma bacillus of Cholera in Port SaidPasteur scientists included Roux， Yersin， …Franco Russian alliance in 1894 but no place for Haffkine due to his association with Narodnaya Volya。。British and French pretensions that imperialism led to improved health for the subjects in the Raj…Haffkine in Calcutta 1893-4， with opposition at times to vaccine despite its efficacy， especially amongst Muslim and the military and medical establishment of the Raj。Part 3: about power and pesticides…The blindness and narrowness of the British Colonial Office， the India Office the （French） Quai d’OrsayQueen Victoria’s munshee: her intimate Indian servant/secretaryserved her last 14 years and some said Victoria with her openness towards having an Indian personal servant couldn’t be an imperialistic villain…But the very means used to bind the parts of the empires more closely… became the flowing conduits of disease and death…poet writes Rats die the east and a few days later people die like city walls…and soon thereafter dies himself of plague British opposition to quarantine due to lack of belief in its efficacy and concerns of economic disastrous impact But business had an unexpected partner- sickness Founder of London School of Tropical Medicine， Patrick Manson， worked in China IMCS for 18 years prior These various bacteriologists in 1890’s working for their government’s imperialism agenda…but Yersin may have been revered by Vietnamese。“British India， at its most idealized: orderly responsible， benevolently custodial， a just and conscientious government， on which the sun would hardly dare to set”Bubonic plague in Bombay triggered the beginning of the end of the Raj in 1897…the forces to destroy it both born in the epidemic:social and religious outrage and mass strikes and demonstrations… A vaccine would be better than brutal interventionist measures Half of Bombay’s population of 850，000 had fledHaffkine works out a vaccine bur there is much anti vax-ismAnd Haffkine， the Russian scientist is regarded by much of the establishment as a foreign body…despite his accomplishments Perhaps an English Dryfuss…Disinfection， segregation， and quarantine vs vaccinations a great vaccine race amongst scientists of the great powers The war against infection mutated into a culture war in which militant nationalism struck a first， bloody blow And then， in 1902， the Malkowal tetanus complications: 19 cases！ blamed on Haffkine。。Ross， whose photo album illustrates the Indian plague epidemic in this book ， also discovered the life cycle of malaria in anopholes （and was not supported by IMS）。。 quite like Haffkine’s problem。。But he is first British Nobelist in 1902。。They have a common enemy: institutional barbarism Never gets back to research in India; in 1925， at age 66， to the abortive Joint supported Bolshevik Jewish Crimea project！ Yevrey na zemlye！ Lasted til 1927…Represents Alliance Israelite Universelle Winding down:Final riffs on COVID and Fox news Rand Paul Fauci bashers and on Horseshoe Crab and big pharma’s impact on it。The demises of the various vaccinators profiled， generally with little glory。And finally the institute in india ， named after Haffkine， produces millions of doses of COVID vaccine， but not without issues that arise…。。 。。。more
Riet
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Niet zo goed als de eerdere historische boeken van deze schrijver， maar wel heel interessant。Hij geeft de historie van de verschillende eerste vaccinaties （pokken， cholera， de pest）， maar verzandt af en toe wel in de details。 Het best vond ik nog de biografie van de microbioloog Hafkine （een Russische Jood） die veel gedaan heeft in o。a。 India om de cholera en de pest te bestrijden。Ook toen al veel tegenwerking door mensen， die niet in vaccinaties wilden geloven。 In het laatste hoofdstuk trekt Sc Niet zo goed als de eerdere historische boeken van deze schrijver， maar wel heel interessant。Hij geeft de historie van de verschillende eerste vaccinaties （pokken， cholera， de pest）， maar verzandt af en toe wel in de details。 Het best vond ik nog de biografie van de microbioloog Hafkine （een Russische Jood） die veel gedaan heeft in o。a。 India om de cholera en de pest te bestrijden。Ook toen al veel tegenwerking door mensen， die niet in vaccinaties wilden geloven。 In het laatste hoofdstuk trekt Schama een interessante parallel met de behandeling van dr。 Fauci in de Amerikaanse pers en politiek tijdens de corona epidemie。 Al met al wel een boek waar je veel uit kunt leren。 。。。more
Marks54
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An expanded review to follow。On of the top social and cultural historians of Europe has written a history of efforts to develop， test， and propagate vaccines and public health programs for the major epidemics that terrified people in the past but which have largely disappeared in the west today。 This is especially noteworthy in outlining the political and social difficulties that emerged and threatened prior vaccine initiatives。 Those who followed these issues with COVID-19 will feel right at ho An expanded review to follow。On of the top social and cultural historians of Europe has written a history of efforts to develop， test， and propagate vaccines and public health programs for the major epidemics that terrified people in the past but which have largely disappeared in the west today。 This is especially noteworthy in outlining the political and social difficulties that emerged and threatened prior vaccine initiatives。 Those who followed these issues with COVID-19 will feel right at home。 This is a terrific and wise book that is well worth reading。 。。。more
Melinda
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Excellently researched， engagingly presented。 I listened to the audiobook， which was read by the author -- which I always appreciate， as they can lend emphasis where they intend it to be。 I did struggle with the overlapping timeliness in the various narratives of the book。
Perry
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This is a history of vaccines and viruses， which puts the current vaccine denialism in context。 It’s as it always was: some people would rather think magically than logically。 I suppose that reading the book could lead to an understanding that we shouldn’t hope for better from our fellow people。 The last chapter was particularly effective。
Christopher Junker
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It is easy to forget， in an era of enormous laboratories， and the vast apparatus of the National Institutes of Health to forget that the beginning mastery of the horrible diseases that have plague， the world ever since people decided to congregate in collections， larger than small families was undertaken by courageous heroes， acting as much on intuitive understanding as firm knowledge。 This isn’t Schama’s best work I think， but like all of his accounts well worth reading。
Beth S。
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The stories of small groups of scientists fighting smallpox， cholera and plague are fascinating and well-told （although it's definitely a cultural history， not a scientific one）。 The extremely half-assed thesis about people of the borderlands and the introduction of foreign bodies through vaccination is whatever。 The long bookends recapping the COVID-19 response are completely unnecessary。 A two-page introduction like "man， living through a pandemic is a real headfuck， let's look at some other o The stories of small groups of scientists fighting smallpox， cholera and plague are fascinating and well-told （although it's definitely a cultural history， not a scientific one）。 The extremely half-assed thesis about people of the borderlands and the introduction of foreign bodies through vaccination is whatever。 The long bookends recapping the COVID-19 response are completely unnecessary。 A two-page introduction like "man， living through a pandemic is a real headfuck， let's look at some other ones from history" would have been plenty！ I didn't need or want a rundown of all the dumb shit that happened in the last three years。 。。。more
Nixx
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A good 3。5 but rounded down to 3 as it wasn’t exactly the book I thought I was getting， I’d anticipated more detail around Covid-19。 However the historical aspects of vaccine trial （and error） made it an interesting read。
Venneh
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A genuinely interesting medical history that looks at the history of vaccines and how they were legitimized and rolled out among nations and pandemics。 If nothing else a lot of it is going to sound real familiar （the reasons against it， dumb ass decisions）， but it helps to know that this kind of thing has been faced before， and that theoretically， it can be overcome again。 I do wish that Mr。 Schama had gone into some of the climate change he alluded to in the historical analyses of the plagues， A genuinely interesting medical history that looks at the history of vaccines and how they were legitimized and rolled out among nations and pandemics。 If nothing else a lot of it is going to sound real familiar （the reasons against it， dumb ass decisions）， but it helps to know that this kind of thing has been faced before， and that theoretically， it can be overcome again。 I do wish that Mr。 Schama had gone into some of the climate change he alluded to in the historical analyses of the plagues， but you can't always have everything。 Still a good read。 。。。more
Catherine Woodman
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There is a lot of material packed into this volume， and it is all good information， but for me， the message was a little muddled。 I can agree that the health of a nation economically depends on the physical health of it's citizens， and therefore when pandemics inevitably happen， the powers that be are looking for someone to blame at least as much as they are seeking solutions。 That happened with COVID and it has happened repeatedly through history。The 18th-century development of vaccination was There is a lot of material packed into this volume， and it is all good information， but for me， the message was a little muddled。 I can agree that the health of a nation economically depends on the physical health of it's citizens， and therefore when pandemics inevitably happen， the powers that be are looking for someone to blame at least as much as they are seeking solutions。 That happened with COVID and it has happened repeatedly through history。The 18th-century development of vaccination was spurred by the mutation of smallpox into a potentially fatal virus。 The English discovery that a small dose of the pus from someone with active disease worked as a shield against full-blown infection。 Meanwhile， inoculation by insufflation—blowing dried， powdered pus up the nostrils—was state policy in China。 The Victorian age of globalization showed that disease moved as easily as goods through steamship and rail。 The need for international coordination was obvious， but rivalrous powers resisted restrictions。 So was born both vaccination and the skeptics who questioned it's utility and safety。 The author goes on to tell the saga of cholera， and with it， all the prejudices that were fanned across the globe。 。。。more
Ronnie
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I will write a review later。
Caro
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Although this is about global pandemics， it's also - even mostly - about unsung heroes in medical science。 We meet vaccine pioneers and advocates from Pasteur to Proust and his physician brother， to the enterprising Lady Mary Wortley Montague， who bravely inoculated her children against smallpox when the method was still distrusted by most of her peers。 But the true hero is Waldemar Mordechai Wolff Haffkine， a Ukrainian Jew who persisted in making and distributing life-saving vaccines against ch Although this is about global pandemics， it's also - even mostly - about unsung heroes in medical science。 We meet vaccine pioneers and advocates from Pasteur to Proust and his physician brother， to the enterprising Lady Mary Wortley Montague， who bravely inoculated her children against smallpox when the method was still distrusted by most of her peers。 But the true hero is Waldemar Mordechai Wolff Haffkine， a Ukrainian Jew who persisted in making and distributing life-saving vaccines against cholera and bubonic plague despite the distrust of the medical establishment。 Schama is clearly fascinated by his life story and more or less hijacks the book to explore it。One depressing theme is that vaccine resistance is nothing new。 "As so often is the case， experience of the last epidemic dominated approaches to the next one。" In 19th century India， "Thus it was that the war against infection mutated into a culture war in which militant nationalism struck a first， bloody blow。" And there's more， as Haffkine is vilified and his research ignored by the powers that be。 Sound familiar？There's also an epilogue that gives due credit to Dr。 Fauci， who was abused by many for his life-saving public health work。 Plus ça change， plus c'est la même chose。 。。。more
Heather Williams
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In Foreign Bodies， Simon Schama， a British historian， lays out a sweeping social history of inoculation， a range of methods used to protect people against disease that would eventually include vaccination。 In tracing the transmission of this idea， Schama's investigation and research moves from China to colonial Europe。 He highlights forgotten characters， including a Greek woman who was one of the earliest and most prolific public-health servants， inoculating more than 4，000 patients herself and In Foreign Bodies， Simon Schama， a British historian， lays out a sweeping social history of inoculation， a range of methods used to protect people against disease that would eventually include vaccination。 In tracing the transmission of this idea， Schama's investigation and research moves from China to colonial Europe。 He highlights forgotten characters， including a Greek woman who was one of the earliest and most prolific public-health servants， inoculating more than 4，000 patients herself and causing no ill effects。 Today， paranoia about vaccines and vaccinators is experiencing yet another outbreak。 Anthony Fauci， who formerly served during the covid-19 pandemic as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases has become a hate figure for many Americans。 Conspiracy theories froth that vaccinators want to puncture people's skin to pump in tiny microchips。。。 etc。 An interesting and insightful read。 Schama tells a compelling tale and presents a formidable study of how blame， mixed with antisemitism has attended disease and vaccination through the ages。 。。。more
Jeff
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This is a history book， well-written and well-researched。 I was maybe expecting a little more on the scientific/medical/technical side， but I am thrilled that I found this work。 The cultures and personalities explored give context and a welcomed social dimension to the narrative。 The accounts of entrenched xenophobic anti-science bureaucrats stifling and vilifying the efforts of dedicated scientists and medical professionals to protect the general population from a pandemic were sobering and fam This is a history book， well-written and well-researched。 I was maybe expecting a little more on the scientific/medical/technical side， but I am thrilled that I found this work。 The cultures and personalities explored give context and a welcomed social dimension to the narrative。 The accounts of entrenched xenophobic anti-science bureaucrats stifling and vilifying the efforts of dedicated scientists and medical professionals to protect the general population from a pandemic were sobering and familiar。 。。。more
Janet Milne
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Too long， very wordy， long-winded and often rambling。 The paragraphs are often formidably long and the sentences complex。 Not supple and flowing to read。 The only snappy thing about the text is the title: a reference to Haffkine not being a Britsh citizen by birth。As to the topics covered， it could better have been published as two books of a more manageable length:1 Various miscellaneous anecdotes about vaccine history。2 A biography of Waldemar Haffkine。
Simon Target
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I feel that Simon Schama really loves history， especially all the （sometimes contradictory） physical details of historical period。 It makes for a rich read。 He is quite happy to stop his story and divert to a vivid but irrelevant description of a train ride to St Petersburg， say， and it is always a pleasurable detour。 Historical light gets bent by the gravitational pull of his own personal prejudices occasionally but his wealth of language and knowledge make this book a real revelation， especial I feel that Simon Schama really loves history， especially all the （sometimes contradictory） physical details of historical period。 It makes for a rich read。 He is quite happy to stop his story and divert to a vivid but irrelevant description of a train ride to St Petersburg， say， and it is always a pleasurable detour。 Historical light gets bent by the gravitational pull of his own personal prejudices occasionally but his wealth of language and knowledge make this book a real revelation， especially if you have the time to stop and think about it all as you go。 。。。more
Peter Henningsen
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A good factual history of the progress of vaccination， particularly for smallpox， cholera and plague。 Very straightforward although it sometimes jumps around in time。 Some good examples of how orthodox approaches and opinions held by governments and their leaders and their entrenched rent-seekers often stand in the way of new approaches advocated by pathbreaking scientists （e。g。， Gatti， Haffkine） Unfortunately， as is the case with other most modern history books， the last chapter is the perfunct A good factual history of the progress of vaccination， particularly for smallpox， cholera and plague。 Very straightforward although it sometimes jumps around in time。 Some good examples of how orthodox approaches and opinions held by governments and their leaders and their entrenched rent-seekers often stand in the way of new approaches advocated by pathbreaking scientists （e。g。， Gatti， Haffkine） Unfortunately， as is the case with other most modern history books， the last chapter is the perfunctory woke screed that seems to be a mandatory condition now required by editors for publication。 。。。more
Alexandra
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This book suffered from a truly astonishing， mind-blowing， chronic inability to stay the f*ck on topic。 As a global health nerd who wants to read any and all things about international systems and disease， I was super stoked about this book and pre-ordered it when I heard about it。 Boy， was I disappointed。 This book is long， clogged with information， and meandering。 Up front I'll say that the sections on smallpox bored me， though that's not really the author's fault: I'd already read an entire b This book suffered from a truly astonishing， mind-blowing， chronic inability to stay the f*ck on topic。 As a global health nerd who wants to read any and all things about international systems and disease， I was super stoked about this book and pre-ordered it when I heard about it。 Boy， was I disappointed。 This book is long， clogged with information， and meandering。 Up front I'll say that the sections on smallpox bored me， though that's not really the author's fault: I'd already read an entire book on Mary Wortley Montagu and smallpox inoculation throughout history - that's not really on Schama， but at the same time he contributed absolutely nothing new to the conversation。 He just summarized facts that are already known， which is interesting if you've never heard them， but not useful if you're writing a new book in a field for subject matter experts。 Moving on to the other sections: cholera， tuberculosis， plague， etc。 These topics were focused on various countries under British rule and examined colonialism and little-known medical figures such as Proust， Haffkein， Voltaire， etc。 All of this was interesting - but again， Schama is not an expert in the medical/public health field， and this is made painfully obvious when he detours into what he is an expert in: the plight of Jewish people in the 19th century， certain parts of history， art history， French history。 He gets so into the weeds on little background details that if you picked up this book to learn about "Pandemics， Vaccines， and the Health of Nations，" you'll be left confused， frustrated， and - if you're like me - irritated。 The chapters are long， difficult to follow thanks to the constant diversions， and never present a cohesive thesis。 The title of this book implies heavily that Schama is going to make a linear or at least tangential argument （using case studies） that explore how global health is affected by the onset of pandemics， and the approach to vaccination in response to such。 Instead it is just a hodgepodge of diverting facts， blog-like explanations of niche topics， and rumination on the experience of outbreaks within the borders of specific nations。 It's frustrating because Schama makes such good points about exploitation， the colonization of medicine and treatment， and the dichotomous nature of medical care when it comes to class， but he constantly fails to bring anything together in a thesis that ties the book up neatly。 By the end of it， he's talking about Fauci， Fox News， and horseshoe crabs， mulling over the state of the world today while only thinly drawing it back to the topics he'd droned on and on about chapters before。 I was severely （obviously） disappointed in this book。 It took me ages to drag myself through， and I would not recommend it to anyone， especially anyone who has no background in global health security or public health。 At the conclusion of it， I've decided Schama just threw darts at a board to pick the title of this book， and the dartboard was just full of words that had been viral （no pun intended） in the news lately。 Then he rambled on about every single thought he'd ever had regarding disease and society while in lockdown， and it never occurred to him that his thoughts belonged on a blog， not in a book。 Though narrowly focused， "Fevers， Feuds， and Diamonds" is a better read on literally every buzzword in this book's title - pandemics， vaccinations， and the health of nations。 。。。more
Frank
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Simon Schama's Foreign Bodies is a bit like a talented but awkward teenager struggling to find himself。 SS is a very creditable historian with a well developed side interest in art， and I was surprised to discover he's written what I took to be a popular science book and which， in part - but only in part - lived up to that description。 The best part of the book takes up the history of vaccination。 SS tells us the practice existed as a folk remedy in the Caucasus and even remote parts of Wales as Simon Schama's Foreign Bodies is a bit like a talented but awkward teenager struggling to find himself。 SS is a very creditable historian with a well developed side interest in art， and I was surprised to discover he's written what I took to be a popular science book and which， in part - but only in part - lived up to that description。 The best part of the book takes up the history of vaccination。 SS tells us the practice existed as a folk remedy in the Caucasus and even remote parts of Wales as early the late 15th century， and was first adopted into mainstream medicine in Turkey。 He then goes on to tell a story of public and administrative resistance with multiple faces: from religious believers who held that efforts to cure illness was a kind of subversion of god's plan/vengeance， from patriotism of the not-invented-here variety， from British administrators refusing to recognise health emergencies with the potential to affect trade， from "common sense" suspicion of the notion injecting healthy people with substances won from effluvia and， sometimes， feces of sick animals especially， from suspicion of vaccination advocates who belonged to a different religion/nation/class etc。 It was very interesting to discover how these same public reactions occurred again and again over a period of about 200 years。 Whenever a pandemic was virulent enough to terrify the public they would turn to and laud scientists。 Once the threat receded， they just as quickly turned against these benefactors， wanting to forget them。 This all makes for a great and topical story， only SS could not hold himself back （and his editor was no help here either） from long deviations， for instance about Voltaire， about Zionism and about Jewish religious practices， none of which had much apparent bearing on the material。 Another large part of Foreign Bodies is taken up with the story of Waldemar Haffkine。 Haffkine led an interesting and eventful life， and SS might have done well to write instead his biography。 A brilliant researcher into vaccination as well as a fearless doctor in the field， Haffkine was constantly at odds with the authorities and SS makes Haffkine into a kind of post-Dreyfus， pre-Fauci figure。 。。。more
Mairead
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Detailed
Clare Boucher
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I’ve enjoyed a lot of Simon Schama’s books but struggled with this and， I’m afraid to say， gave up。 The level of detail was difficult for me to engage with。 I need more of a structure in which to place that detail。
Kathleen
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Ranging across centuries， and countries， here are the stories of the scientific developments that ensured very few of us grew up dreading smallpox， cholera， plague or other deadly epidemic diseases that killed millions。 The quest continues of course: malaria is particularly deadly still and a vaccine maybe imminent。I bogged down a little in the details of biography of scientists I have heard of （Pasteur， Yersin etc）and ones new to me especially Haffkine， who saved thousands， maybe millions from Ranging across centuries， and countries， here are the stories of the scientific developments that ensured very few of us grew up dreading smallpox， cholera， plague or other deadly epidemic diseases that killed millions。 The quest continues of course: malaria is particularly deadly still and a vaccine maybe imminent。I bogged down a little in the details of biography of scientists I have heard of （Pasteur， Yersin etc）and ones new to me especially Haffkine， who saved thousands， maybe millions from cholera and plague。 If， like me you find this slow reading， you will understand when Schama pulls it together in our struggles against the most recent pandemic， Covid。An excellent book。 。。。more
IvanOpinion
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The rating is a compromise。 My subjective experience was that it was a 1 star for me。 Simply too much detail on the biographies of the people Schama focuses on。 But it isn't Schama's fault that I wanted something a bit higher level。 Had I wanted the level of detail， I think I'd have given this 4 stars。 The rating is a compromise。 My subjective experience was that it was a 1 star for me。 Simply too much detail on the biographies of the people Schama focuses on。 But it isn't Schama's fault that I wanted something a bit higher level。 Had I wanted the level of detail， I think I'd have given this 4 stars。 。。。more
Andries Nieuwenhuize
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Als een wervelwind raast Schama door plaatsen， personen en gebeurtenissen rond de ontwikkeling van serums tegen epidemieën。 Hij heeft in Haffinger een held gevonden waar de meeste bladzijden dan ook om draaien; als lezer moet je zelf zoeken naar de rode draad。 En dat is jammer want het materiaal is boeiend， zoniet noodzakelijk om te weten， en dat Schama goed kan vertellen blijkt wel uit de kleine verhalen， zoals de degenkrab bijvoorbeeld。 Maar de gang van zaken rondom de COVID-19 pandemie zit de Als een wervelwind raast Schama door plaatsen， personen en gebeurtenissen rond de ontwikkeling van serums tegen epidemieën。 Hij heeft in Haffinger een held gevonden waar de meeste bladzijden dan ook om draaien; als lezer moet je zelf zoeken naar de rode draad。 En dat is jammer want het materiaal is boeiend， zoniet noodzakelijk om te weten， en dat Schama goed kan vertellen blijkt wel uit de kleine verhalen， zoals de degenkrab bijvoorbeeld。 Maar de gang van zaken rondom de COVID-19 pandemie zit de historicus duidelijk dwars。 In een laatste hoofdstuk lucht hij zijn hart en je vraagt je af of je nu niet ineens een opiniestuk aan het lezen bent。 Misschien had Schama toch even moeten wachten met het boek。 Totdat Corona historie was geworden。 。。。more
Alenka of Bohemia
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This is a difficult one to rate。 On one hand， the research and language are top-notch， and the story Simon Schama had chosen to tell is extremely interesting。 At the same time the book， from its title and synopsis， promises something other （a more or less comprehensive look at pandemics in history and the development of vaccination） than what is eventually given。 Instead， the author focuses on several little-known personalities from the medical fields of the 19th/ early 20th century， who saved a This is a difficult one to rate。 On one hand， the research and language are top-notch， and the story Simon Schama had chosen to tell is extremely interesting。 At the same time the book， from its title and synopsis， promises something other （a more or less comprehensive look at pandemics in history and the development of vaccination） than what is eventually given。 Instead， the author focuses on several little-known personalities from the medical fields of the 19th/ early 20th century， who saved an incomprehensible number of lives through their discoveries and application of science - yet the world did not thank them。Schama has a talent for telling stories， but more often than not he elaborately explains what could be a footnote， which can be irritating at times。 Simply put， there is a great deal to learn from this book， but it is not necessarily the exact lesson that you wanted。 。。。more
Noelle M。
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I won this in a goodreads giveaway。 It was well researched， and told lots of stories I'd never heard of before。 I won this in a goodreads giveaway。 It was well researched， and told lots of stories I'd never heard of before。 。。。more
Steve
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