Breathless

The Scientific Race to Defeat a Deadly Virus

English language

Published Oct. 6, 2022 by Simon & Schuster.

ISBN:
978-1-9821-6436-2
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(5 reviews)

7 editions

Breathless

Quammen interviewed many researchers involved in the Covid-19 pandemic during and just after the lockdown using Zoom. He has digested and presented this information for us in his usual straightforward and evenhanded way. The nature of RNA viruses, the known history of the progression of the pandemic, and various opinions on the origin of the virus are discussed. DQ occasionally goes off on a tangent, e.g. the details of Pangolin smuggling, but I found it all interesting. My edition from last year has an addendum that brings things up to date, although there hasn't been a lot of new data on the origin of the virus - the author explains why.

There is a summary of the whole book at the end of the text that was largely made by abstracting what you've just finished reading. I found it unnecessary unless you aren't going to read the book.

Chapter 37, …

Vivid, informal, holistic view of scientific response to pandemic

Not only is Quammen a spectacular science expositor to begin with, he already had years of experience writing about viral zoonoses prior to COVID. It makes sense that he should have written such a book, and it's great.

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