The Ghost Map: The Story of London's Most Terrifying Epidemic--and How It Changed Science, Cities, and the Modern World
Steven Johnson
****
This is a good, but uneven book. Does a nice job of describing the thinking and methodology of John Snow, the first to suspect cholera was transmitted via water, and the contribution of Henry Whitehead, a local clergyman to the Soho district where the outbreak occured. Snow's mix of inventiveness, observation, and mapping are clearly presented within historical context, and well done. Snow's work was given fine granular information from Whitehead's deep familiarity with the families struck by the disease, creating an argument that finally triumphed over the "miasma" disease paradigm that held sway at the time. The conclusion of the book went on to argue the benefits of urbanization as a "greener" solution to population growth than rural or suburban living patterns. He then goes off into speculation about plagues and terrorism as limits to urbanization. It's true that solving the disease problem in cities has led to their continued growth, but the conclusion felt like a classic student essay where the writer starts a new topic as a conclusion instead of truly wrapping up the old one.
