Pathogenesis: How Germs Made History

A topical subject considering the pandemic and that I have long covid.
I listened to the author tell his own research via audio, and I have no problems with his tone of voice or the pace he spoke at.

First, the criticism of the book would be the use of Pop culture to use as analogies. I am never that keen on this as it tends to date the books that use it as a device and there are also those that have no idea who Monty Python, as an example, might be.

That one complaint aside, I have learnt a lot. I was reminded of Guns Germs and Steel in that that book along with this one will have me reading my history from a slightly different angle into the future. The Black Death did cause the change from Feudalism to capitalism, and just about everything I have read on that subject passes over this a little too quickly. It is like listening to complaints from my fellow Australians about inflation at the moment. One major cause was the Pandemic, but that hardly gets a mention. It should. The point the author made was that as pandemics go this one was handled very well and that the death rate by historical standards was low. Governments used measures to protect their population, and that included financial as well.

The chapter on Cholera in London and elsewhere in the British Isles was fascinating. Even when the researchers in the field said that the issue was a public one in that the water was not clean enough, some of the more conservative types refused to accept that public money should be spent on health outcomes that were good for society. For all Australia's faults in our health care system, I have yet to hear anyone from any of the political factions say anything other than good health outcomes for the populace at large are good for the economy. Why some in other countries argue this point confuses me somewhat. The proof is London's clean water in the excellent health and economic outcomes that were provided. The wiki is worth a read if one is not going to read this book.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1854_Broad_Street_cholera_outbreak

Recommended to those with an interest in the subject.