Initially, I expected the story to somehow surprise me in a very fundamental way...but that's not really what Johnson was going for here. WYSIWYG (What you see is what you get), it's the story of how a disease outbreak unfolded, and the two men who ended up cracking the code of its cause and cure.
Once I got past the let down of failing to find a mind-blowing surprise waiting for me (Johnson does little to hide the cause or resolution during the
telling of the story - this is no mystery novel) I grew to enjoy the clear way in which he describes the approach and thinking of John Snow and Henry Whitehead. The book allows you to understand the way in which they approached the problem and the (assumed) thought process they undertook.The epilogue of the book brought me to the kind of writing that I really enjoy from Johnson - multi-threaded contemporary commentary from a scientific and cultural bent. The reason for the meat of the book is a bit more personal.
Johnson's undergrad thesis was on epidemiology, and his graduate work in literature focused on Victorian society...so the intersection of those tow ideas in this book made for a natural confluence of interests. Though the amount of detail in the book is substantial, it's not overwhelming, and it is explained in Johnson's usual fashion of approachability without condescension.
That said, though I appreciate the reasons for his departure from his (in my view) traditional style...I certainly appreciate the final chapter of the book where he returns to the style for a few fleeting moments. His fascination with the topic grows on you as you read it...but I personally have a rough time trying to practically absorb the problems and world-view from so long ago and let it color the way I now see the world.
It's that adjustment of the way I now see the world that separates good books from those that truly fascinate me, and sadly I didn't find this book to cross that line.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.