pickBook 2 ✔️ for #DiseaseoftheMonthBookClub
(Prompt: Read a book about a virus)
Fascinating look at the scientific research that was being conducted on coronaviruses after the SARS and MERS outbreaks, which enabled scientists to quickly pivot to create a vaccine when COVID-19 spilled over into the human population. A bit technical so I‘m glad I had at least a semester of college-level biology.
Happy Litsyversary, @BarbaraBB ! Tagged is the book I‘ve already preordered (the paperback edition comes out in March 2024). I saw the author at a literary festival this year and was mesmerized by his commentary. And this is the type of nonfiction book that hits one of my sweet spots: #DiseaseoftheMonthBookClub 😀
@dabbe @CBee —see original post to enter!
#BBGiveaway
Santa Fe International Literary Festival, Day 2: Attended a presentation with David Quammen, nonfiction author of 18 books including “Spillover: Animal Infections and the Next Human Pandemic,” “Ebola: The Natural and Human History of a Deadly Virus” and the tagged one. He provided an edge-of-your-seat description of a trek he made in Gabon, Africa in pursuit of an article for National Geographic.
pickI‘ve been waiting to read an analysis of the COVID-19 pandemic that has the temporal distance needed to draw real conclusions. This is the first book that I‘ve read the feels that way. There is still much to know but this is a step in the right direction.
pickWhat I liked best about this book about COVID-19 is that its focus is on the science and the scientists. Quammen provides a lot of scientific detail, written in a way that non-specialists can understand.
5th book finished for #FabulousFebruary @Andrew65
#BookSpinBingo #BookSpin @TheAromaofBooks
pickPicked up my #doublespin today. It was my #Jolabokaflod present to myself and worth every penny. David Quammen writes so well and accessibly that he‘s an insta-buy for me. If you have the slightest interest in how / where COVID-19 originated and spread, as well as the characteristics that made it into a pandemic, you‘ll be riveted. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
pickThere have been a number of COVID books out already, but this is the first I‘ve read that sticks to the science. Overall, it‘s a good look at the pandemic, framed within the greater picture of recent coronavirus diseases. It is repetitive in places, which in some ways is good (he spends a lot of time showing how the science refutes the lab leak hypothesis), but it other places is just a bit sloppy. Still a strong pick.
pickI knew I was going to like this book! A look at the scientists and hard science behind the hunt for the origins of the covid coronavirus. More questions than answers at this point but if you're interested at all in how viruses work, I highly recommend this book. No politics, except where it intersects with scientists doing their work. No Fauci or public health crisis stories. Just a thorough and informative science timeline, clearly explained. 5🌟
A new book from my favorite science writer (and an expert on viruses) about the origins and implications of the COVID-19 coronavirus? Yes, please! 😊 👍
Breathless: The Scientific Race to Defeat a Deadly Virus | 
