Brief Description
A history of one of the most feared diseases, ending with a conditional human success story - the worldwide eradication of smallpox.
Learn More about the Book
"The most terrible of all the ministers of death." Thomas Macauley Mozart, Voltaire, Elizabeth I and Abraham Lincoln all had it--and survived. Millions did not. The scourge of smallpox affected rich and poor alike, killing many and disfiguring the rest. 'Cures' included bleeding, purging, oil of scorpions and even crabs' eyes. Edward Jenner's breakthrough in 1796 started the slow, often controversial, process of controlling the virus. By 1979 smallpox had become the first-ever disease to be eradicated. Yet, today, its possible use in biological warfare presents a major threat. This is an accessible account of the history, and possible future, of a terrifying disease. Ian Glynn is Professor of Physiology Emeritus at Cambridge University and Fellow of Trinity College. He is the author of An Anatomy of Thought (Oxford, 2000). Jenifer Glynn is a Cambridge historian and author of Tidings from Zion (Tauris, 2000).
Review Quotes
1. "The Life and Death of Smallpox, provides the best and most interesting published account of the history of the world's most serious pestilence. Thoroughly researched and eminently readable, the book traces the history of smallpox from its earliest origins, more than 3000 years ago, to the status of smallpox virus in 2004." Donald A. Henderson, M.D., M.P.H., Former Director of the Global Program for Smallpox Eradication, Professor of Medicine and Public Health, Center for Biodiversity, University of Pittsburgh, Dean Emeritus of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
2. .,."a fascinating account..." - Teaching History, Michael Salevouris, Webster University
3. "This book is thoroughly researched and eminently readable. ..the definitive work on the subject. Highly recommended." R.M. Mullner, University of Illinois at Chicago, CHOICE
4. "Richly illustrated with photos and drawings, the book also presents a detailed history of the many battles to isolate, control and eventually inoculate individuals." Science and Theology News
5. .,."the Glynns have produced a highly readable account of one of history's most feared diseases." The Quarterly Review of Biology, Jonathon Erlen, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
6. "A timely and terrifying tale that allows us to hope that mankind's worst virus has passed. Ian and Jenifer Glynn have written a gripping history of smallpox, the horrific plague of mankind, from the first millennium BC until its virtual eradication at the end of the Twentieth Century." Brenda Maddox, author of Rosalind Franklin: The Dark Lady of DNA
7. "The authors of this book are just the right people to produce an accurate and extremely interesting account of the history of this remarkable disease... The last chapter provides an accurate and up-to-date description of the potential threat of the use of smallpox as a bioterrorist weapon." Frank Fenner, Professor Emeritus and Visiting Fellow, John Curtin School of Medical Research, Senior author of Smallpox and its Eradication
8. "Nevertheless the book is a useful addition to the literature on the history of human infectious disease and the human social response to it. It certainly should be part of the library of any scientist or historian interested specifically in the history of smallpox but also those concerned with the more general problem of human adaptation to disease and the social mechanisms available to human societies to combat disease." American Journal of Human Biology, Donald J. Ortner, Department of Anthropology, Smithsonian Institution
9. ."..a fascinating account..." - Teaching History, Michael Salevouris, Webster University
10. ."..the Glynns have produced a highly readable account of one of history's most feared diseases." The Quarterly Review of Biology, Jonathon Erlen, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
11. ..".the Glynns have produced a highly readable account of one of history's most feared diseases." The Quarterly Review of Biology, Jonathon Erlen, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
12. ..".a fascinating account..." - Teaching History, Michael Salevouris, Webster University
