The Ghost Map, by Steven Johnson

The Ghost Map

Written by Steven Johnson, Narrated by Alan Sklar

Reason for Reading: Science, Religion, and History group read

Genre: Non-fiction - Medicine and History


Review
The Ghost Map follows Dr. John Snow on his quest to discover the cause of a terrible cholera outbreak in Victorian England. Johnson makes investigative epidemiology so interesting that I could almost see it dramatized (and fictionalized) into a TV show - people DO love their investigative TV! :) But that's beside the point, I guess. At the time of this outbreak in 1854, the popular theory for the spread of cholera was miasma - deathly air that carried disease. After a LOT of investigative footwork, Snow drew a map of the cholera outbreak, demonstrating that the pattern followed streets that led to a particular well (the Broad Street pump) rather than following a circular pattern you'd expect with the spread of bad air. This map, and the investigation leading up to its creation, revolutionized epidemiology. In fact, many consider Snow the "first epidemiologist." 

I really enjoyed this book. The writing was engaging (it had a few boring parts in the end when Johnson was describing the map in great detail - I think that may be a problem with listening to the audio book rather than actually reading it, though). The subject was fascinating. Sklar did a good job of narrating the book, and except for the very end with the description of the map, I was quite pleased with the book's audio version. If you have any interest in epidemiology, or the history of medicine, I highly recommend this book.

The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgeson Burnett

2012 Book 23: The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgeson Burnett (2/5/2012)

Reason for reading: Working on reading some of the classics that I should have read when I was a child but never got to (despite my parent's encouragement).

My Review: 4/5 stars
10-year-old Mary was being raised as an emotionally neglected, but very spoiled, brat in colonial India when she is suddenly orphaned by a cholera epidemic. She is sent to the house of a rich uncle in England, where she is ignored. Despite these tragic events, Mary somehow manages to make friends, and discover the magic of nature, for the first time in her life. This was an adorable book, though greatly contrasted from A Little Princess, in which the main character was sweet and lovable all the way through. I hadn’t thought I’d seen the movie when I read this book, but clearly I have since I knew the story too well. I will have to re-watch the movie now.