Customer Reviews
Gripping true stories of life-threatening events - By: Keith Appleyard, 18 Jan 2004 
This is an outstanding book. First-hand true-life recollections of a diverse range of natural disasters across Africa over 3 decades.
The authors tell their stories well, putting you right therein the bush. They retain their sense of humanity throughout so you really feel for their patients & their families as human beings.
1 quibble : only towards of the end of the story do they get married; at the very end of the book they both thank their first spouses for their respective sacrifices – but you never even get to know their spouses first names – what sort of acknowledgement remains anonymous?
2 mysteries : whilst there are plenty of good maps, there are no photos; no pictures of colleagues or patients, & no pictures of the offending Viruses & Bacteria – why not?
Gripping true stories of life-threatening events - By: Keith Appleyard, 18 Jan 2004 This is an outstanding book. First-hand true-life recollections of a diverse range of natural disasters across Africa over 3 decades.
The authors tell their stories well, putting you right therein the bush. They retain their sense of humanity throughout so you really feel for their patients & their families as human beings.
1 quibble : only towards of the end of the story do they get married; at the very end of the book they both thank their first spouses for their respective sacrifices – but you never even get to know their spouses first names – what sort of acknowledgement remains anonymous?
2 mysteries : whilst there are plenty of good maps, there are no photos; no pictures of colleagues or patients, & no pictures of the offending Viruses & Bacteria – why not?
Very good value for money - I've had to pay much more for far lesser books.
Remarkable - By: taking a rest, 25 Nov 2002 Biologic agents, viruses, & the weapons they can be used with, have become common themes for movies & books. The Centers for Disease Controlin Atlanta Georgia has also become a frequently mentioned locale as the HIV Virus grewin scope & with it the public's concern. The descriptions of some of these viruses seemed almost like science fiction, as the descriptions I read often seemed on the edge of hyperbole. This volume by two "virus hunters" is eminently readable by the layperson as it explains the basics about what a virus is, how they spread, & how horrible the consequences of infection can be.
Dr. Joseph B. McCormick & Dr Susan Fisher-Hoch are as amazing as the diseases they pursue. These doctors, whenin the field, often perform tests that would normally only be performedin a Level 4 Biosafety Laboratory. This is a facility that is isolated, at timesin a separate building, includes airlocks, & the researchers wear the pressurized suits you may have seen portrayedin movies or documentaries. Level 4 is as high as it goes, or perhaps better stated, Level 4 is where the most lethal, dangerous, & exotic agents are worked with. These Doctors however, will work with these same agentsin a tent, orin the open,in the most primitive conditions where the tiniest of errors could mean their death.
As a reference point I went to the Centers for Disease Control website to see where HIV is placed on the 1-4 scale. HIV except for certain circumstances is handledin a Level 2 environment. This put into perspective for me just how incredibly violent & lethal are the agents these people deal with. The book gives a great deal of background on HIV from the earliest days it was identified. Hemorrhagic fever viruses are discussedin detail, as well as specific discussions of Ebola, Lassa fever, Dengue Fever & others.
The entire book is fascinating & at times surprising. These Level 4 killers are not new, their emergence is primarily the result of humans venturing where they have never been, or interacting with the environmentin a novel manner. The book eloquently explains that these viruses are not lurking waiting to pounce on the first person that passes by; rather they existin a biological balance with their natural host, until disturbed.
You will read about accidents when these toxins are handled, why these diseases that are so virulent, so deadly, don't race around the globe. This is an extremely engrossing read, as everyday "man" is pushing the limits of what is manipulated, what structures we may be able to modify, but cannot with certainty handle. And there is always the fear of creating an event over which control is lost with catastrophic results.
Better than any novel because this book is true, it is science explained & practiced by the world's experts. Those who often were the first to identify & deal with the disease tell the stories, & finally they are scientists, so what you read are facts, not the embellishments of a novelist. These viruses need not modified for fictional movies & books, for the reality are horrible enough.
