jiyoung's review against another edition
3.0
A set of musings on vaccinations and their impact on society, acting as both a history of medicine and also personal essays on the anxieties of new motherhood. Biss makes interesting parallels (e.g., although health demands individual responsibility it still depends on the health of the broader community – representative democracy is a similar type of ‘empowered powerlessness’) but the overall flow was choppy. Previously mentioned facts kept repeating as if being introduced for the first time, which felt like lazy editing.
thisotherbookaccount's review against another edition
2.0
I don't know what I was expecting with On Immunity: An Inoculation by Eula Biss, but it's certainly not this. This book is essentially a loose collection of essays, all directly or tangentially related to the topic of immunity and vaccines. At least that is the case for the first half of the book, where Biss explores the various types of vaccines, the emotional and psychological reasons behind anti-vaccination advocates, as well as her own experiences as a new mother. These essays, while disjointed for the most part, at least serve to parse out the science behind vaccines and those who oppose them.
My problem with the book, however, comes in the second half, where Biss goes off to wild tangents about vampires, blood transfusions, oil spills, toxic mattresses and her own perceived inadequacies of being a new mother. And while Biss does sometimes try to tie these points back to the topic at hand — that's vaccines and immunity, in case you've already forgotten — they often seem forced. The book also feels hard to read because there are no clear topics for each chapter. It almost feels as if the essays were written as streams of consciousness, and Biss committed to writing whatever that came to her head. The result is a mess of a book that isn't structured in any logical way, and feels like a dive into the murky waters of the author's mind.
If you want to learn more about vaccines and anti-vaccine advocates, you will find some information here, but don't count on it giving you the full picture. Also, if like me you are a fan of medical science writing in the veins of Siddhartha Mukherjee and Atul Gawande, or even popular science writers like Mary Roach's, this is most definitely not the book for you.
My problem with the book, however, comes in the second half, where Biss goes off to wild tangents about vampires, blood transfusions, oil spills, toxic mattresses and her own perceived inadequacies of being a new mother. And while Biss does sometimes try to tie these points back to the topic at hand — that's vaccines and immunity, in case you've already forgotten — they often seem forced. The book also feels hard to read because there are no clear topics for each chapter. It almost feels as if the essays were written as streams of consciousness, and Biss committed to writing whatever that came to her head. The result is a mess of a book that isn't structured in any logical way, and feels like a dive into the murky waters of the author's mind.
If you want to learn more about vaccines and anti-vaccine advocates, you will find some information here, but don't count on it giving you the full picture. Also, if like me you are a fan of medical science writing in the veins of Siddhartha Mukherjee and Atul Gawande, or even popular science writers like Mary Roach's, this is most definitely not the book for you.
vivacissimx's review
1.0
1 star because the author refused to say Palestine. Seriously a feat of prose and halfway baked metaphors more magical for their incompletion, but you know when someone who is a master of their craft is suddenly called upon to do a task that they aren't familiar with? How painful and humbling it is to see an expert in the field stumble like a newborn fawn? That's Biss when she attempts to speak on race.
allieraeraney's review
4.0
Thorough and thoughtful insights on worldwide epidemics from fear to H1N1. This book gave me insight into the way people think about vaccines and disease, and was ahead of it’s time seeming almost like an eerie prophecy of the pandemic we are in now. Wonderful read, oh and mothers are the best.
negar_s's review
4.0
3.5
نصفه اول کتاب 5 بود کاملا. ترکیب خیلی خوبی از داستان زندگی خود نویسنده و تحقیقات علمی. بحث‌هاش در مورد تشبیهات استفاده‌شده کنار مباحث سلامت و واکسیناسیون خیلی خیلی قشنگ بود و لذت بخش.
نصفه دوم کتاب خیلی پراکنده شد. یه سری مباحث رو درک نکردم که چه ربطی به اصل ماجرا داره و تشبیهاتش دیگه زیاده از حد تخیلی بودن.
ویرایش: بعد از یک مرور دیگه روی مطالب کتاب، یادم اومد که بیشتر مشکلات نیمه دوم از تکراری بودن حرفا بود تا نامربوط بودن، ولی خب هر دوتاشون بود :))
همچنان ولی بدون شک خوندن حداقل نصف اول کتاب رو به همه توصیه می‌کنم، مخصوصا توی وضع کنونی. روایت‌های نویسنده از اتفاقات پندمی H1N1 خیلی جالب و آشنا بودن و انگار که تاریخ همینطور در حال تکرار شدنه.
نصفه اول کتاب 5 بود کاملا. ترکیب خیلی خوبی از داستان زندگی خود نویسنده و تحقیقات علمی. بحث‌هاش در مورد تشبیهات استفاده‌شده کنار مباحث سلامت و واکسیناسیون خیلی خیلی قشنگ بود و لذت بخش.
نصفه دوم کتاب خیلی پراکنده شد. یه سری مباحث رو درک نکردم که چه ربطی به اصل ماجرا داره و تشبیهاتش دیگه زیاده از حد تخیلی بودن.
ویرایش: بعد از یک مرور دیگه روی مطالب کتاب، یادم اومد که بیشتر مشکلات نیمه دوم از تکراری بودن حرفا بود تا نامربوط بودن، ولی خب هر دوتاشون بود :))
همچنان ولی بدون شک خوندن حداقل نصف اول کتاب رو به همه توصیه می‌کنم، مخصوصا توی وضع کنونی. روایت‌های نویسنده از اتفاقات پندمی H1N1 خیلی جالب و آشنا بودن و انگار که تاریخ همینطور در حال تکرار شدنه.
textpublishing's review against another edition
5.0
Fun fact: Bill Gates has a Summer reading list, and this is on it: http://www.gatesnotes.com/Books/On-Immunity. "When I stumbled across the book on the Internet, I thought it might be a worthwhile read. I had no idea what a pleasure reading it would be." 👍 👍
This issue just keeps bobbing up. So if you are interested or need ammunition for your next debate, this elegant and insightful read is certainly a worthwhile one to peruse.
This issue just keeps bobbing up. So if you are interested or need ammunition for your next debate, this elegant and insightful read is certainly a worthwhile one to peruse.
n_nazir's review against another edition
4.0
Excellent. This is probably the most poetic book on a scientific topic I have read.