Breathless: The Scientific Race to Defeat a Deadly Virus
National Book Award finalist Breathless tells the story of the worldwide scientific race to decipher the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, trace its source, and make possible the vaccines to fight the Covid-19 pandemic—a “luminous, passionate account of the defining crisis of our time.” (The New York Times).
Breathless is a “gripping” (The Atlantic) but “clear-eyed analysis” (Time) of SARs-CoV-2 and its fierce journey through the human population, as seen by the scientists who study its origin, its ever-changing nature, and its capacity to kill us. David Quammen expertly shows how strange new viruses emerge from animals into humans as we disrupt wild ecosystems and how those viruses adapt to their human hosts, sometimes causing global catastrophe. He explains why this coronavirus will probably be a “forever virus,” destined to circulate among humans and bedevil us endlessly, in one variant form or another. As scientists labor to catch it, comprehend it, and control it, with their high-tech tools and methods, the virus finds ways of escape.
Based on interviews with nearly one hundred scientists, including leading virologists in China and around the world, Quammen explains that:
-Infectious disease experts saw this pandemic coming
-Some scientists, for more than two decades, warned that “the next big one” would be caused by a changeable new virus—very possibly a coronavirus—but such warnings were ignored for political or economic reasons
-The precise origins of this virus may not be known for years, but some clues are compelling, and some suppositions can be dismissed
-And much more
Written by “one of our finest explainers of the natural world for decades” (Chicago Tribune), This “compelling and terrifying” (The New York Times) account is an unparalleled look inside the frantic international race to understand and control SARS-CoV-2—and what it might mean for the next potential global health crisis.
Breathless is a “gripping” (The Atlantic) but “clear-eyed analysis” (Time) of SARs-CoV-2 and its fierce journey through the human population, as seen by the scientists who study its origin, its ever-changing nature, and its capacity to kill us. David Quammen expertly shows how strange new viruses emerge from animals into humans as we disrupt wild ecosystems and how those viruses adapt to their human hosts, sometimes causing global catastrophe. He explains why this coronavirus will probably be a “forever virus,” destined to circulate among humans and bedevil us endlessly, in one variant form or another. As scientists labor to catch it, comprehend it, and control it, with their high-tech tools and methods, the virus finds ways of escape.
Based on interviews with nearly one hundred scientists, including leading virologists in China and around the world, Quammen explains that:
-Infectious disease experts saw this pandemic coming
-Some scientists, for more than two decades, warned that “the next big one” would be caused by a changeable new virus—very possibly a coronavirus—but such warnings were ignored for political or economic reasons
-The precise origins of this virus may not be known for years, but some clues are compelling, and some suppositions can be dismissed
-And much more
Written by “one of our finest explainers of the natural world for decades” (Chicago Tribune), This “compelling and terrifying” (The New York Times) account is an unparalleled look inside the frantic international race to understand and control SARS-CoV-2—and what it might mean for the next potential global health crisis.
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Community Reviews
To be honest, I’m not really sure why I finished this one. For one thing, it was pretty clear to me well before the halfway mark that I wasn’t really going to enjoy it or get much out of it. And I didn’t. I guess I’m just not at all interested in medical science. I read a lot of nonfiction, and a lot of it centers on subjects that are beyond my normal interests. But the one thing I’m now clear about is that I should skip the medical books.
From a more objective standpoint, though, I don’t think I would recommend this book in particular. It seems to be a general history of the pandemic, and the scientific community’s response to it. But by the end, it’s clearly just a defense against the lab-leak theory of the outbreak’s origin. For my part, I don’t really care much about that question. Not that it’s unimportant, but the question seems pretty complex, and I don’t think it’s something a rando like me (or you, probably) has enough understanding to parse. I’m tired of people acting like whatever knowledge they have of such a controversy is precisely the amount of knowledge necessary to discern the truth. And this book seems to be targeted at just such people.
Besides which, the facts are clearly not all in. This book came out months ago, but just last week there were new revelations about this question. And I doubt they’ll be the last. Writing, publishing, or reading such a lengthy book on the subject seems premature, at this point. I don’t feel like it was time well spent. As I said, I’m not really sure why I finished.
From a more objective standpoint, though, I don’t think I would recommend this book in particular. It seems to be a general history of the pandemic, and the scientific community’s response to it. But by the end, it’s clearly just a defense against the lab-leak theory of the outbreak’s origin. For my part, I don’t really care much about that question. Not that it’s unimportant, but the question seems pretty complex, and I don’t think it’s something a rando like me (or you, probably) has enough understanding to parse. I’m tired of people acting like whatever knowledge they have of such a controversy is precisely the amount of knowledge necessary to discern the truth. And this book seems to be targeted at just such people.
Besides which, the facts are clearly not all in. This book came out months ago, but just last week there were new revelations about this question. And I doubt they’ll be the last. Writing, publishing, or reading such a lengthy book on the subject seems premature, at this point. I don’t feel like it was time well spent. As I said, I’m not really sure why I finished.
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