Review Detail

The Deadliest Diseases Then and Now

Middle Grade Non-Fiction 338

Timely Nonfiction

September 12, 2021

Overall rating

5.0

Writing Style

5.0

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

5.0

Learning Value

5.0

This is the first book in "The Deadlist" series. In a nicely formatted and illustrated book (available in hardcover and paperback, which will probably show up at book fairs), we see the evolving history of epidemics, starting with extensive coverage of the Great Mortality in the 1300s, with an overview of a few earlier incidents. It was interesting to hear that this was what the epidemic was referred to at the time; we tend to call it the Black Plague. I learned more about this event than I thought it possible to know, and the book continues with further information about other diseases and the people involved in dealing with them, like Dr. Wu Lien-teh, a Chinese doctor at the beginning of the 20th century whose work influenced how we dealt with Covid-19.

Good Points

The 1918 flu also gets good coverage, and there's an overview of other diseases like smallpox, polio, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS. this is well-formatted for easy reading, and conversational in tone. Scholastic Focus has come out with some interesting nonfiction titles lately which I very much enjoyed.

The fact that this is available in paperback makes it a great choice for readers who are really interested in information about other periods of history that had to deal with pandemics. Children struggle to make sense of their world, and need lots of information about COVID and other diseases so that they can understand what is happening. The historical perspective is helpful, because it can assure them that as horrible as this event is, the world will survive.

I'm looking forward to the next book in the series, Hurricanes Then and Now, which is a much needed book in the wake of Hurricane Ida.