June is our non-fiction month and one of the groups particular “special interests” is pathology and disease. One of our all-time favorites was “Rabid: A Cultural History of the World's Most Diabolical Virus” by Bill Wasik and Monica Murphy. If this sounds up your alley and you haven’t read it, you may want to check it out.
For this June however, we are reading “Pathogenesis: A History of the World in Eight Plagues” by Jonathan Kennedy. I’ve already had this one out of the library a few times, as I’m taking notes since I am unlikely to find book club questions for this one, and so far – it is INCREDIBLE. Just a really new perspective on how disease may have shaped far more of human history than we may know. I think you all are really going to love this one.
***Book summary from Goodreads***
An account of how the major transformations in history—from the rise of Homo sapiens to the birth of capitalism—have been shaped not by humans but by germs
According to the accepted narrative of progress, humans have thrived thanks to their brains and brawn, collectively bending the arc of history. But in this revelatory book, Professor Jonathan Kennedy argues that the myth of human exceptionalism overstates the role that we play in social and political change. Instead, it is the humble microbe that wins wars and topples empires.
Drawing on the latest research in fields ranging from genetics and anthropology to archaeology and economics, Pathogenesis takes us through sixty thousand years of history, exploring eight major outbreaks of infectious disease that have made the modern world. Bacteria and viruses were protagonists in the demise of the Neanderthals, the growth of Islam, the transition from feudalism to capitalism, the devastation wrought by European colonialism, and the evolution of the United States from an imperial backwater to a global superpower. Even Christianity rose to prominence in the wake of a series of deadly pandemics that swept through the Roman Empire in the second and third centuries: Caring for the sick turned what was a tiny sect into one of the world’s major religions.
By placing disease at the center of his wide-ranging history of humankind, Kennedy challenges some of the most fundamental assumptions about our collective past—and urges us to view this moment as another disease-driven inflection point that will change the course of history. Provocative and brimming with insight, Pathogenesis transforms our understanding of the human story.
***This month's restaurant selection***
We are returning to Midtown to try out the fascinating mashup of sports bar pub food and cajun/creole cuisine (thus the Bistreaux). Hopefully the weather is nice, as I’ve asked for a table out on their covered patio area. You can check out the menu here: https://locate.walk-ons.com/fl/tampa/restaurants-441.html
For parking, there is a garage located right next to Walk Ons that offers lots of free, covered parking.
***Not sure about book club or never been to one before? ***
Read the book (or some of the book). Come to the Meetup. Eat yummy food and chat with folks about what you thought about the book. REPEAT!
***Not sure where to get the book? ***
All books we select have a decent number of copies (at least 3-4 across all formats) at both the Hillsborough and Pinellas County Library. And, of course, you can always buy a copy.
***Didn’t finish/hated this book?***
Come to the Meetup anyway! If you didn't finish - just be aware, there will be spoilers. If you hated it, come and rant! In my experience, the books that generate the best conversations and the books we really love are rarely the same books.
