Fatal Fever: Tracking Down Typhoid Mary

Caprice #75

by Gail Jarrow

In March 1907, the lives of three remarkable people collided at a New York City brownstone where Mary Mallon worked as a cook. They were brought together by typhoid fever, a dreaded scourge that killed tens of thousands of Americans each year. Fatal Fever: Tracking Down Typhoid Mary is the first middle-grade trade book that tells the true story of the woman who unwittingly spread deadly bacteria, the epidemiologist who discovered her trail of infection, and the health department that decided her fate. This gripping story follows this tragic disease as it shatters lives from the early twentieth century to today. It will keep readers on the edges of the seats wondering what happened to Mary and the innocent typhoid victims. With glossary, timeline, list of well-known typhoid sufferers and victims, further resource section, author’s note, and source notes.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Middle Grade, Science, Childrens, Historical, American History

192 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1985

About the author

Gail Jarrow is the award-winning author of nonfiction books and novels for readers 8-18. Latest book: WHITE HOUSE SECRETS: MEDICAL LIES AND COVER-UPS. Visit GailJarrow.com.

Reviews

[Laela · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title of this book should have been “Typhoid Mary: The girl who refused to wash her hands.”

Once upon a time, we lived in a country that did not have public sanitation. People would just put their waste in the river, or ground, or you know…wherever. And, surprise surprise, people got sick. Water would be so disgusting in some cities that people bought bottled water (yup, even way back then, people sold bottled water).

One of the many diseases you could pick up from infected water was typhoid fever. Do you know how you get typhoid fever? Typhoid fever is transmitted through fecal matter (poop, people, we are talking about poop.) People thought they were being clean by washing their dishes, but they were just washing it in fecal contaminated water. They would think their sheets were really clean, but the sheets were washed in fecal contaminated water. They made ice cream with fecal contaminated water. Typhoid fever germs where in or on everything. This did not make for many Happily Ever Afters.

The story of the Typhoid fever epidemic doesn’t start with Mary Mallon and her unwillingness to wash her hands. The first place typhoid fever case that starts to catch the imagination of people is at a small college in upstate New York. Things got so bad in Ithaca, New York that a specialist was called in to figure out what they could do before the whole town died from this horrible disease. This is where George Soper steps into the story. He starts cleaning everything up in Ithaca and setting up all kinds of crazy sanitation procedures. It took George Soper seven months to clean up the city, but it was worth it.

Not only does this story have poop, contamination, and George Soper. It also has a mystery. A very wealthy family’s daughter comes down with typhoid fever at their summer house in Oyster Bay. Nobody can figure out why this family’s daughter got sick. They had everything checked but nothing on their property was contaminated. They end up hiring (guess who?) George Soper to track down the culprit. It takes Soper a year until he can track down a cook who is contaminating everybody. This cook would go from house to house cooking for wealthy families until somebody got sick with Typhoid fever. Then, she would move on to a new house. The cook was none other than Mary Mallon, aka Typhoid Mary.

I want to tell you all about the rest of this book, but I wouldn’t ever do it the justice that Gail Jarrow does. You are not going to believe the things that happen to Typhoid Mary. I hope you get a chance to read this epic epidemic/disaster/tragedy book. If nothing else, it will make you want to wash your hands on a more regular basis. In fact…I’m going to go wash my hands right now. Who knows who has been touching this keyboard? I’m not taking any chances.

[Abby Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here's a history of the deadly disease typhoid fever and its most infamous carrier Typhoid Mary. Jarrow's book clearly presents the time in which most of the action is set - the early 20th century - and it's enlightening to see how doctors treated typhoid fever before antibiotics existed. I think that both the health department's side and Mary Mallon's side of the story are pretty evenly presented. Tons of archival photos add to the text and help illuminate the time and place. I am sad that the book is large-format nonfiction since I know that'll be a deterrent to the middle-schoolers-and-up for whom this book is written.

I think you should know that this book deals a LOT with poo. Never in a graphic or totally disgusting way, but if you are maybe reading something over lunch, there could be more appealing choices. I have a pretty high tolerance for and interest in icky medical stories, so it did not bother me.

Interestingly, another book for young readers about Typhoid Mary is being published this year (Terrible Typhoid Mary by Susan Campbell Bartoletti), so I'm sure that will invite many comparisons.

[Lillian · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read one other of Gail Harrow’s book and loved it!! I was definitely exited to start this one and I was not disappointed!! I for whatever reason love reading about medical trillers. I find SO interesting! I mean I totally over think my normal cold I have after reading any of Gail’s books, but hey it’s still a great read!! Her books are just so well formatted!! For instance, Gail mentions a person important to the plot and boom there’s a picture of the person on the next page so you can picture them in your head instead of wondering what they look like. This book was so interesting and I love how fast it is to read!! I so look forward to reading more of her books!!

[Kari · Rating 2 out of 5]

**2 Stars**

I found it rather bland and boring, but it is a good reference book for a middle or high school report.

Mary Mallon was an Irish immigrant employed as a cook for a variety of wealthy families. However, she had a dark secret, she was a carrier of typhoid fever and each family she worked for had members that contracted the disease because of her. George Albert Soper dedicated his life to helping towns through typhoid by through cleaning and sanitation; overtime he became known as the “Germ Detective.” Soper was responsible for connecting the numerous family typhoid epidemic to Mary, and he was responsible for her initial lockup.

Fatal Fever really shows how unsanitary the world used to be around 100 years ago. It bounces back and forth between talking about the typhoid fever outbreak and lack of sanitation, and Mary’s story as a captive. Filled with a variety of facts, Fatal Fever is a great choice for anyone looking to read about epidemics. True to a non-fiction work, Gail Jarrow made sure to include source notes, a bibliography, and index. Jarrow also included a great timeline that covers not only Mary’s captivity but the typhoid fever epidemic as a whole. There is also a great glossary included at the end of the book which helps readers understand some of the more technical terms used in the book.

[Danny Regan · Rating 4 out of 5]

So, I got to read this book early. I'd say its good. I was kind of expecting Typhoid Mary to be this crazy murderer that someone would have to track down, but it shows that she was human. And i like how it doesn't label anyone as "the bad guy." It's very interesting and I hope you guys get a chance to read it.

[Traci · Rating 4 out of 5]

Right before we were sent home for several weeks, I stocked up on reading material, both for my husband and myself. Working in a library definitely has some perks! We'd also received next year's Battle of the Books lists for middle and high school. I decided I might as well use this time to not only catch up on my own to-be-read list, but maybe getting a good jump on the BOB lists, as I never do make it through them completely.

First up, Fatal Fever. Yeah, seems a bit ironic, doesn't it? My reading a book about tracking down a carrier during a mini-epidemic. In any case, it made for very interesting reading, and yes, I found myself thinking of the current COVID-19 pandemic quite often. Of course I've heard the name "Typhoid Mary" before, but for some weird reason, I was thinking tuberculosis, not typhoid. I'm not sure why but I've always associated the moniker with those who are coughing, which isn't really one of the main symptoms of typhoid fever. Hm... In any case, it was sad to read how many typically died during an outbreak, and fascinating to read about Dr. George Soper, his work on making the connection between the disease and poor sanitation, and especially about the realization that one person - a cook - had potentially caused the illness in several different well-to-do families, resulting in more than one death.

I did feel bad for Mary, as this wasn't her fault. She was a carrier, but never appeared to be sick, often described as "the picture of health" by many. When taken in and tested, she kept stating over and over that she'd never had typhoid in her life, not to mention that she'd helped nurse many of those in the families she worked for, so how could she be responsible? That may be the biggest mystery of all time - how did Mary not only come to acquire the bacteria that caused typhoid fever, but how on earth did they continue to live in her system for YEARS without making her sick? It's like the perfect parasitic system: Mary provides the host body, makes sure it stays healthy, and when the time is right, bits of the bacteria get to head out to new territories to colonize and thrive. Except in those new bodies, they often made the host sick enough that the host died. Not a good system.

My sympathy for Mary did vanish for a while, as her behavior could be at best described as reckless (this is after she's been quarantined and doctors have tried to cure her) and criminal at worst (she disappears from the radar after agreeing to be tracked by the health department and agreeing never to work as a cook again - which, of course, she eventually does). When she is caught the second time, I was wondering how the authorities would handle her. Her eventual end of life had me pitying her yet again. She's not really a villain, and yet, it's easy to paint her as one.

A very, very interesting book, about an incredibly interesting subject. I highly recommend this one.

[Karen Hao · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fatal Fever is a non-fiction book that talked about typhoid, a very fatal fever that was very common in the US but now rare because it could be prevented by a vaccine. Fatal fever is influenza and in this book, the story plot followed a victim of typhoid, Mary Mallon. People might question that if the fever was common, why did we have to learn about this fatal fever through Mary Mallon? That is because when most people are committed to typhoid fever, they will have symptoms such as poor appetite, or abdominal pains, but Mary Mallon was asymptom. Asymptom fooled everyone into thinking Mary is healthy and in her career as a cook, she infected 51 people and three is dead.

[Emily Eidson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was FASCINATING. I highly recommend if you want to know about the shockingly unfair treatment of Mary Mallon “Typhoid Mary” as well as how the disease, Typhoid Fever, spread across the US in the early twentieth century. I basically read this book in one sitting, because it was so dang INTERESTING...and I now want to be a Typhoid Fever SCHOLAR.

An extremely poignant read given the current state of the world. If anything, this book reminds us to WASH YA DANG HANDS!

[Katie Moran · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was absolutely fascinating! Written for young adult readers I believe, but absolutely devoured by this adult reader! As a science nerd, this was so well written and researched. I absolutely will read the rest of series and the author’s other works!

[Victoria Grillo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think Fatal Fever was a good book. But in the beginning it was very slow. It was telling you about the disease and giving background information, but once you start learning about Mary and the investigation it starts to pick up. Overall I think it was a good book.

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book detailed a fascinating sequence of events. I learned so many things and it also made me want to know more. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

[Jennifer Chamberlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting true story about Mary Mallon(Typhoid Mary). Very relatable after living through the recent pandemic.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well-researched high-school-level book that tells the sad story of the irascible, volatile Mary Marron, the typhoid carrier in the early years of the twentieth century, who was dubbed "Typhoid Mary" by the sensational press. The term stuck, and the unfortunate Ms. Marron went down in history with that designation. The book has many photos and editorial cartoons, the latter depicting Marron as a virtual angel of death.

The accompanying cartoons show the crude level of metaphor common at that time (one shows a Cornell student dying in a bed while a woman dressed up in an academic gown looks down with pity. It's almost like he missed the graduation ceremony, and the woman was either delivering his diploma or mourning his incipient death. Another shows Marron in her job as a cook, cracking eggs that look like little skulls into a frying pan).

The book also provides a window into how much ignorance there was in the early 1900s about where diseases came from. Marron was forever insulted at her accusations because she herself had never had typhoid. I suppose the whole idea of washing your hands after you went to the bathroom was something she considered fanciful and arbitrary. It's an interesting glimpse into the develop of germ theory.

Quite a fun book and a quick read.

[Elizabeth (NC) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting read during this time. Talks a lot about isolating people for the greater good.

[Jodi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I went to Thailand this summer and came home with my very own case of this nineteenth-century scourge. And it is no joke. For real.

I found this young adult nonfiction to be fascinating and personally relevant.

And if ever you are pining for the good ole days gone by, I highly recommend this book as a reminder of why there's no time like the present.

[Jessie Bear · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most fascinating and infamous women of her time, Mary Mallon a.k.a. Typhoid Mary spread typhoid fever wherever she went, unknowingly contaminating the food she prepared as a hired cook. Fatal Fever excellently explains the atmosphere of urban widespread disease that could lead a frantic public health department to making an example of one woman. Readers need no prior knowledge of the disease as Jarrow thoroughly describes the symptoms and transmission methods of typhoid, showing readers how famous public health workers such as George Soper would systematically inspect waterways of towns with outbreaks, finding the source of the disease and curbing it. Reading about contaminated groundwater has never been so fascinating. Primary sources such as photographs, journal entries, and media images work well to further understanding of the major concepts presented and provide visual context to Mary Mallon’s world. Fatal Fever’s asides and chapter introductions have a red, yellow, and black sensationalist-styled layout, which isn’t the most aesthetically pleasing but is appropriate for the subject manner at hand. Jarrow’s work fantastically combines historical fact with scientific public health theory and an empathetic biography of a complicated woman, dangerous but perhaps wronged by the world around her. Readers interested in Typhoid Mary, the early twentieth century, or gross diseases will be riveted to Fatal Fever. Fatal Fever: Tracking Down Typhoid Mary is very highly recommended for ages ten to fourteen. (Four and a half stars)

[Mandy Peterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Typhoid can be fun.
Did you know that? Let me rephrase.
Reading about typhoid fever can be entertaining.
Better? (Much.)
Fatal Fever is all about the biology behind typhoid fever, the break down of how it spread, primary sources connecting us to the patients who succumbed to the illness, and a tracking of Typhoid Mary as she continued to unknowingly spread the disease through her work as a cook. As I read this book, I cringed. I chuckled. I gasped. I was even known to say, “I learned more about typhoid in 18 pages of this book than I have in all the other 33 years of my life combined.” Entertaining, straightforward, lots of visuals, and hard to put down. While the chapters are easily digestible, you won’t want to stop reading. I had no idea the depth of the typhoid epidemic and I certainly didn’t have any more than a passing empathy for those who suffered. Typhoid Mary was a name I knew but didn’t possess more than a cursory knowledge of. I highly recommend this book to anyone who:
1. is considering entering the medical or law enforcement professions,
2. is fascinated by historical accounts that are downright well written, or
3. likes to read about American history.
This book (and its predecessor about Scarlet Fever) will be making an entrance to our library this spring.

Read Alike:
How they Croaked by Georgia Bragg

[Valerie McEnroe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book reads like a detective story. Typhoid Fever is usually associated with a contaminated water supply. Crowded and unsanitary conditions increases the incidence of disease. That's why it's unusual when the wealthy Warren family contracts the disease while vacationing in an unpopulated area of Long Island. Once the water checks out ok, famous epidemiologist George Soper looks for another cause. Indicators point to their cook, Mary Mallon. Soper tracks her down and finds that other families employing her have also contracted the disease. Mary refuses to be tested and eventually is arrested. Fecal tests prove the presence of the bacteria. She is a carrier with no symptoms.

She is sent to the hospital on Brother Island in Long Island Sound to be quarantined until she is bacteria free. Her story goes public and from then on she is known as Typhoid Mary. She's held against her will for several years and finally released under the condition that she will not return to food service. She changes her name, returns to food service, and causes another outbreak. She is arrested again and sent back to Brother Island where she lives out the rest of her life.

It's a fascinating story with lots of photographs.

[Shelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story of Mary Mallon, long known as Typhoid Mary, and NYC's efforts to stop the spread of typhoid. Everything and everyone was laid out so clearly, and the photographs were really great and well used. The story largely focuses on Mary, Dr George Soper and Dr S Josephine Baker, the health officials who worked to eradicate typhoid. While Mary did infect many people with her cooking, dozens of others infected more (including a man who was similarly locked up on the same island after going back to food prep work after being told not to, but let go after a few years), and the book was clear that she didn't deserve being isolated the rest of her life. But at the same time, it was clear that she never would have left cooking (largely because no other job paid as well, and she was very skilled), so what to do? Should the health offices have as much power to detain as they did? Readers get to decide for themselves, which is awesome.

Also, Dr Baker's work reducing infant death was amazing and I want to read so much more about her!! I had no idea 40% of New York deaths were kids under the age of 5 until she started working with the city.

[Hilary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Typhoid Mary is a legend, unfortunately for her. This book discusses the disease of typhoid fever, how it is spread, what the symptoms are, and particularly large outbreaks in history. It focuses on cases and outbreaks that were contracted by a cook in the 19th century. She was very elusive, she didn't stay at any job for too long. Somehow, the wealthy families that she worked for seemed to fall ill with the disease. When Mary was finally tracked down, the medical officials were very surprised by what they found. Despite the fact that she was a carrier of typhoid fever, she was not and had never been sick with the disease. I thought this was a great telling of the story. It was interesting, it was mysterious, and it was sad. The pictures really helped paint the picture of the times and the settings. It was especially of interest to me, because I actually had typhoid fever as a young girl!

[Richard (Rick) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, this book was surprisingly interesting! The true story of Typhoid Mary and the chase and detective work required to track her down and try and figure out why she was spreading typhoid fever to dozens of unsuspecting people. I literally couldn't put it down tonight, so interesting. A very good book for upper elementary and middle school kids as it's interesting, full of science and history, and emphasizes washing your hands---and goodness knows kids don't do that enough!

[Ian Tymms · Rating 4 out of 5]

A gem of a book. It weaves together the personal story of "Typhoid Mary" with the history of disease and sanitation work. There's an element of adventure and mystery but Jarrow is also scrupulously disciplined in her use of primary sources and her avoidance of sensationalism. A powerful story well written but also a powerful model for how to do historical research and write about it in an intelligent and thoughtful way.

[grieshaber.reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Covers the history of the deadly disease as well as the fascinating story of Mary Mallon and her unknowingly spreading it to many New Yorkers, killing some. Much of this book reads like a thriller. Excellent author's notes, works cited, index, and further reading. High interest non-fiction! But don't read while you're eating (I lost count of the number of times the words "feces" and "excrement" were used). A must-buy for libraries but a nope for Gateway.

[Kaitlin Spiridellis · Rating 2 out of 5]

It is interesting to see how Mary Mallon did not cooperate with the doctors, even though it might've helped her get the bacteria out of her body. It is a question of her pride verse her well being. I don't think she made the right decision because had she cooperated, she might have been able to get off the island.

[Eleanor · Rating 2 out of 5]

*spoiler alert*
I DO NOT LIKE THIS BOOK!!!! It is very annoying and it is scrambled. they do not say who typhoid Mary is till the end although she appears in the first chapter.

[Katherine Schmitt · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had no idea I was going to be reading so much about poop...plus I wish this was a prettier book.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Remember hearing stories when I was younger about Typhoid Mary & now I know the story behind the name.
Found this to be a pretty interesting read with lots of info on the history of Typhoid Fever.

[Carrie Kellenberger · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great reference book for middle school students and high school students about the history of bacterial infections and typhoid fever. Gail Jarrow explains how a cook named Mary Mallon working in a New York City brownstone building was spreading typhoid fever as an asymptomatic carrier of the disease in March 1907. Mallon went down in history and has been known ever since as Typhoid Mary.

No one was ever able to determine if Mary knew she was spreading typhoid bacteria deliberately or if she was simply unaware.

When the health department caught up to her, they isolated her for a while and tried to kill the typhoid bacteria that she was shedding through fecal matter without success. They never succeeded with this task.

Mary spent the rest of her life on North Brother Island for 26 years because she could not be trusted to stay away from her main source of income which was cooking. She refused to believe she had given anyone typhoid fever despite the trail of dead bodies that could be found in her wake in previous places of employment.

A great reference for young adults and for readers who would like a basic understanding of typhoid fever and how it spreads.

Best Takeaway Quotes

"When a deadly, highly contagious, and untreatable disease strikes, what do we expect health authorities to do? What government actions would—or should—we tolerate? Does the protection of a city’s population trump the rights and freedom of an individual?" ~Gail Jarrow, Fatal Fever

"Too many Americans don’t wash their hands after using the toilet. That’s the conclusion of recent studies conducted in public bathrooms. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends washing with soap and water for twenty seconds, about the time it takes to hum the “Happy Birthday” song twice. This prevents germs from spreading from feces and urine. To keep unwanted bacteria out of your food, wash your hands again before preparing and eating it." ~Gail Jarrow, Fatal Fever

"Today, death from typhoid is rare. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that about 5,700 people are infected each year. Laboratory tests confirm 300 to 400 cases. Nearly two-thirds occur in just six states with large populations: California, New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Texas, and Massachusetts. About 80 percent of these people caught the bacteria during a trip outside the country. Most had been to India, Bangladesh, or Pakistan, where the vast majority of the world’s cases occur." ~Gail Jarrow, Fatal Fever

[Lydia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Explores multiple parts of Typhoid outbreaks; from the causes, the vectors, the disease progression and the aftermath. Starts by following George Soper, who was renowned for his engineering skills that both helped fix disasters and avert them, as he starts on the trail of a before unknown "healthy carrier" of Typhoid. After then exploring how bad typhoid could be by following the outbreak in Ithica New York, we go back to Mr. Soper as he narrows down on an Irish cook. However, finding Ms. Mallon would turn out to be the easiest part of his investigation, as proving it and the moral implications of the issue rear their heads as well.

This is essential a mystery where you know "who dunnit", and you are following the detective as they figure out the pieces. But it also brings up moral questions for the readers (which after 2020 are even more relevant); What do you do with healthy carriers if you can't cure them? Especially if the carrier doesn't believe they are one and refuses to be reasoned with? And, because they refuse to believe or understand what is wrong with them and refuse to take proper precautions, how do you keep the public safe?

Content notes: It mentions that people swear up a storm, but is not written out. No sensuality issues; Ms. Mallon has a longterm boyfriend that she might be living with, but is very unclear on this, so not really objectionable. The details of the disease's progression are told, not super graphic, but if you can't take blood and perforated intestines, this will not be for you; Ms. Mallon is extremely violent when confronted and physically attacks (and later sends letters threatening to kill them), but nothing worse than bruises and small cuts.

[Becky B · Rating 4 out of 5]

The history of the epidemiologist who was hired to track down the root of the cause of a typhoid epidemic in Ithica, New York, made a name for himself, and was then tasked with finding what made an upper crust family come down with typhoid at their resort home which led him to Mary Mallon. The rest of the book follows the life of Mary Mallon, and how typhoid carriers of the time period were treated.

An interesting look at the history of typhoid in the US, the important role of epidemiologists, how the medical community started to get typhoid under control by getting cities to care about how sewage was handled, a brief look at one of the first female doctors in NYC, and also how NYC handled people afflicted with the disease in the early 1900s. Jarrow does a good job of presenting the facts and letting the reader come to their own conclusions about whether Mary Mallon was treated rightly or not knowing both the dangers of a carrier and also what life was like for her in seclusion. The science bits are presented in ways that are easy for the average reader to follow. The history is related in a way that keeps you turning the pages. Overall, a fascinating medical history.

Notes on content: No language issues. (It is said that Mary used choice language or swore at people during her run-ins with health officials, but the swears aren't repeated.) No sexual content. Deaths from typhoid are mentioned but just matter of factly presented. Mary was held against her will in a state facility for many years.