The Atlas Of Disease by Sandra Hempel

The Blurb On The Back:

The Atlas Of Disease gives a unique perspective on how epidemics have spread throughout history, from the fourteenth-century plague that devastated Europe and the lethal outbreaks of cholera in the nineteenth century, right up to the AIDs epidemic of the 1980s and the catastrophic spread of zika in Brazil.

Interweaving new maps based on the latest available data with historical charts alongside intriguing, often unsettling, contemporary illustrations, this extraordinary book plots the course of some of the most virulent and deadly pandemics around the world. Discover how diseases have changed the course of history, stimulated advances in medicine and how mapping has played a key role in prevention and cure, shaping countless lives.

( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )

The Verdict:

Sandra Hempel is a medical journalist whose illustrated book gives a potted history and description of 20 diseases that used to (and in some cases, still) ravage the world. It’s a weird mix of history, geography and science (some of which I knew from elsewhere) but there were nuggets of new information here and while the maps are a little haphazard and poorly designed, they do give a sense of the devastation caused by these diseases.

Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the review copy of this book.