Yellow Fever, Black Goddess: The Coevolution Of People And Plagues (Helix Book) [Paperback]

Christopher Wills (Author)

Book Description

Series: Helix Book | Publication Date: August 29, 1997

In this remarkable account, evolutionary biologist Christopher Wills takes us on a voyage of discovery through the exotic pasts of the viruses and bacteria that periodically emerge with such disastrous results for our species. It is our knowledge of their secret lives, the eons spent quietly passing in and out of myriad other life forms, mutating and coadapting, that gives us hope of taming them. By putting these organisms—from bubonic plague to Ebola—at center-stage, Wills shows how we will eventually master them.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Wills combines a vivid, gripping history of the impact of diseases upon civilization with a sobering survey of current plagues such as AIDS and resurgent tuberculosis. He examines bubonic plague in the Byzantine Empire, which reemerged eight centuries later as Europe's Black Death; dispassionately reviews the unresolved controversy over whether Columbus had syphilis and introduced it to Spain; and follows the devastating course of malaria in West Africa, bejel (a syphilis-like disease) among Middle Eastern Bedouins and such scourges as yellow fever; yaws, an infectious, contagious tropical disease; typhoid; and Ebola. A biology professor at UC-San Diego, Wills maintains that pathogens have helped shape the diversity of complex ecosystems as well as humans' immunological and biochemical diversity. Furthermore, he suggests, some germs have made a "Faustian bargain," an evolutionary compromise, altering their structures to become dependent on the specific behavior of their chosen hosts. This more balanced, less alarmist report deserves a place alongside Laurie Garrett's The Coming Plague and Richard Preston's The Hot Zone. Photos.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

A biology professor (Univ. of California, San Diego) who is the author of two engaging books on evolutionary biology (The Runaway Brain, LJ 8/93, and The Wisdom of the Genes, LJ 10/1/89), Wills here turns his attention to the currently popular topic of infectious disease and its future. The book's contents are eclectic, ranging from the history of particular diseases such as cholera and AIDS (but not yellow fever) to accounts of the author's travels in disease-ridden places to explanations of the genetic mechanisms of evolutionary change. Particularly interesting are discussions of the "motivations" of disease organisms to become more or less virulent, the role of disease in promoting genetic diversity in other organisms, and speculations about future possibilities. Wills has a generally clear and entertaining writing style with a particular gift for striking and useful analogies, although some technical details and occasional obscure literary references may be difficult for some readers. A brief glossary of technical terms is helpful. Although Paul Ewald's Evolution of Infectious Disease (Oxford Univ., 1994) offers a more systematic if technical treatment of the subject, Wills's book is an entertaining and informative study. Recommended for larger public library science collections.?Marit MacArthur, Auraria Lib., Denver
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books (August 29, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0201328186
• ISBN-13: 978-0201328189
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #489,441 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Highly Readable Discussion of Modern Epidemic Diseases, November 11, 1997

By 

[e-mail] (Orion Nebula) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Yellow Fever, Black Goddess: The Coevolution Of People And Plagues (Helix Book) (Paperback)

Yellow Fever, Black Goddess is interesting and anecdotal. Its highly readable by someone with only the fundamentals of parasitology and epidemiology interested in modern day epidemics.

Wills takes the reader through a survey of the world's primary epidemic diseases explaining their origin, morphology, the history of their study and cure. In addition, he addresses some Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs) such as syphilis and AIDS. A major thesis is the constant war of adoption taking place genetically between parasites, disease organisms and human beings. At a macro-level, humanity is changing its environment in the name of progress and to eliminate and control diseases. At the micro-level, parasites and diseases are rapidly mutating themselves to find new hosts in this new environment. On occasion, the resulting mutation is lethal to the host and becomes an epidemic (the modern term for plague).

Wills style is highly readable including several personal stories to illustrate his points. Reading this book does require at least undergraduate knowledge of biology and genetics. However, the author clearly explains the more complex aspects of the subject. The discussion on cholera is particularly interesting and well done.

Wills book does suffer from a lack of coordination and the discussion is uneven. The major sections address the individual diseases and parasites well. However, they are not well organized together as a whole. I imagine there is a connection in the discussion between viral, bacterial, and multicellular parasite contagion, but I failed to fully see the progression. For example, while titillating, I failed to see the connection between syphilis and malaria. Some subject diseases are better covered then others. Also, some diseases are approached in a different fashion from others. This made it difficult to compare and contrast all the diseases discussed in the book. For example, the discussion of cholera is heavily weighted toward morphology and includes personal anecdotes. Willis's discussion of syphilis,. is primarily on the historical origin of the disease. What about a personal anecdote?

Yellow Fever, Black Goddess is a good introduction to modern epidemics for the college-level reader. It discusses several organisms found in the world today that can quickly flourish into epidemics or are epidemic. However, the broad theme of the book is not as well handled as the individual plagues.

8 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Read this book, February 5, 2000

By 

Bruce A. Werness (Cincinnati, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Yellow Fever, Black Goddess: The Coevolution Of People And Plagues (Helix Book) (Paperback)

Wills does not provide an exhaustive review of diseases, but selects illustrative examples. I find this preferable to a less in-depth discussion of a large number of diseases. His incorporation of personal experiences, and theoretical speculations on disease and diversity add breadth and depth to this book. I thought it was excellent.

16 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Stilted prose, October 1, 1998

By 

Frank (Stockton CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Yellow Fever, Black Goddess: The Coevolution Of People And Plagues (Helix Book) (Paperback)

While the subject of the book is fascinating, and there is some interesting information in the book, the book would greatly benefit from substantial editing, with emphasis on writing style.
The book suffers from a number of writing faults. If it's a book about "the coevolution of people and plagues" (its subtitle), why are the author's world travels constantly thrown at the reader? "One of my most searing memories is of being surrounded on a street in Hyderabad by a crowd of lepers.... I reached Vellore, a cheerful and relatively clean market town, after a hectic 120-kilometre bus ride from Madras...."
If the reader makes it past the travelogue, the reader will still have to get through the prose and commas. "Yet the AIDS virus, despite its fearsome aspects, has had just as much difficulty in spreading through the human population as syphilis or typhoid, and has had to make equally dramatic compromises in order to retain its ability to spread" is a typical sentence.
The subject would be much better served if the author could stay on topic and the book was presented as an adventure to be discovered and enjoyed instead of making each sentence (and the book itself) a puzzle to be penetrated.