The History of the World in 100 Pandemics, Plagues and Epidemics

by Paul Chrystal

This revelatory book charts and explains the impact and consequences of successive pandemics, plagues and epidemics on the course of world history – all through the lens of today’s ongoing global experience of COVID 19. Ranging from prehistory to the present day, it first defines what constitutes a pandemic or epidemic then looks at 20 guilty including cholera, influenza, bubonic plague, leprosy, measles, smallpox, malaria, AIDS, MERS, SARS, Zika, Ebola and, of course, Covid-19. Some less well-known, but equally significant and deadly contagions such as Legionnaires’ Disease, psittacosis, polio, the Sweat, and dancing plague, are also covered.

The book is ordered chronologically. Each chapter features an explanation and description of epidemiology, sources and vectors, morbidity, mortality, governmental response and reaction, societal response and impact as well as psychological issues where known - and the political, legal and scientific consequences it had or has for each locus at a local and international level. In short – the book explains how each of the events both made and influenced subsequent history in its own way, particularly how each shaped future medical and scientific research and vaccine development programmes. It also examines myths about infectious diseases, the role of the media and social media. Perhaps most importantly, Paul Chrystal asks what lessons have been learnt. Will we be better prepared next time? Because, if one thing is sure, there is going to be a ‘next time’.

Genres: Nonfiction, History

320 pages, Hardcover

Published July 23, 2021

About the author

Paul Chrystal attended the Universities of Hull and Southampton where he took degrees in Classics. For the next thirty-five years he worked in medical publishing, much of the time as an international sales director for one market or another while latterly creating medical educational programmes for the pharmaceutical industry. He worked for companies such as Churchill Livingstone, Wiley-Blackwell, CRC Press, Academic Press and Elsevier.

Reviews

[Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can’t think of a more timely book! This was a fascinating look at the history of viruses and diseases that have caused mass casualties to humankind. It’s extremely thorough and presents facts without being dry. It feels strange to say I enjoyed it, but I did. While all still horrific, including what we are currently living through, the more we understand the better equipped we are to deal with what may come.

This unbiased review is based on a complimentary copy provided by the publisher.

[Philip William · Rating 3 out of 5]

Irritatingly bad with a few good bits.

It reads like it was rushed out in response to COVID. It needs re-editing and re-writing if there is to be a reprint.

I am not an expert but logic will say that many of the facts are wrong.
In the Plague of Athens the death rate cannot be 25% (page 39) and two pages later "between one-third and two-thirds"
The Antonine Plague cannot originate in China is 200AD (page 47) if it sweeps through the Roman empire in AD 180 and AD 189.
The quote from Marcus Aurelius (Meditations 9,2) says something almost directly opposite to what the author implies but the author is so politically correct he is unable to recognise any facts that contradicts his prejudices.

Thankfully I borrowed this book from the library and so feel I have lost very little and I have gained some hints for further research.

[Rebecca Hill · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting read on the different plagues and pandemics that have swept through the world. It started with the Neolithic Age and moved forward to present day, where we are currently dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic.

I loved the history and the information that was shared, and overall felt it was a great read! This is one that I am going to be recommending for students in history and social geography courses.

[Susan Johnston · Rating 5 out of 5]

Princess Fuzzypants here: Whilst it may not be the wisest thing to read during a pandemic, it certainly was an informative read. The author has gone back to ancient, really ancient, times to document the worst of the lot. It is not a light read although it could be dipped into in manageable bites, if desired. It is chock full of well documented information in a readable format.

It also shows how much humans have learned over the millennia and how little humans have learn. More to the point, it often takes humans a very long time to figure things out, if indeed they do. Many of the same maladies pop up again and again while heads were scratched at the time and lesson learned forgotten quickly. It does prove, however, sometimes when one bright light figures out a crucial point, things can improve greatly.

Thanks to improved hygiene, cleaner water supplies, and medical care some horrible illnesses have been eliminated, or prevented. Vaccines have made an enormous difference in the quality of life for those who have benefitted from them. However, our current situation, highlights one of the biggest barriers to the eradication of many diseases- human nature. There will always be those who refuse to follow. They either forget or do not believe or learn from previous lessons.

Reading about the long COVID or the lingering effects of COVID on those who have had it but survived makes me realize how little some people have learned.. As the child of a parent who had polio, I can attest to the long lasting issues the victim must bear. We can only hope that the dormant remnants of COVID are not as life altering as post-polio syndrome.

Five purrs and two paws up.

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seeing that my state has slipped into yet another round of “masking up”, social distancing, and other aggravating features due to the seemingly never-ending saga that is the Covid-19 global pandemic, I figured reading a book historical plagues would be fitting. This book lists over 100 historical plagues, from all around the world, their causes, and other information anyone would expect from a book like this. I was mostly interested in the long distant historical plagues, with the earliest known being some 5000 BC. This book is fairly thorough and tries to be a combination historical book, and a virology/epidemiology book for better or worse.

“This revelatory book charts and explains the impact and consequences of successive pandemics, plagues and epidemics on the course of world history – all through the lens of today’s ongoing global experience of COVID 19. Ranging from prehistory to the present day, it first defines what constitutes a pandemic or epidemic then looks at 20 guilty diseases: including cholera, influenza, bubonic plague, leprosy, measles, smallpox, malaria, AIDS, MERS, SARS, Zika, Ebola and, of course, Covid-19. Some less well-known, but equally significant and deadly contagions such as Legionnaires’ Disease, psittacosis, polio, the Sweat, and dancing plague, are also covered.”

I somewhat wish that the focus of the book wasn’t through the lense of somebody dealing with Covid-19 -even though that’s literally me, it sort of dates the book a tad. Other things I was not fond of were the author’s insistence of using 2020 and 2021 media terms such as “fake news”. again tethering the book to references to a period of time that will likely not be relevant in a few years. Who knows, “fake news” could be stuck in our lexicon for years to come, but seeing that it’s directly tied to a time period most would prefer to forget. Jumping back in the early chapters to relate everything to Covid-19 was somewhat jarring, the entire time I wanted the narrative to move back to being a historical book. There is also an apparent Christian bias in the writing when discussing the church, but that could have just been the author’s use of historical fragments. Qualms aside, I did enjoy this book, but it’s far from perfect.

The information in this book is well-researched and annotated for clarity. Once it gets going, I enjoyed that the information was largely in sequential order, showing how certain pandemics would appear, fade away for decades, then come right back like nothing had changed. Hearing some of the “cures” for sickness in the past is always a cringe-worthy affair and makes the reader REALLY appreciate our modern medical system despite it’s numerous issues. Want to cure that pesky cold? How about sex with a woman that just started her period, that’ll do the trick!

I definitely recommend this book despite the problems, as those are just a personal taste of mine. I’ve read better books on “The Plague”, but as a historical overview on more than just the medieval, and most popular one, this books stands out a bit from the rest. The book was a valiant effort trying to document such a big topic, and I commend the author for that.

[Lisa Konet · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! This was comprehensive, detailed and factual of the major pandemics, plagues and epidemics since the Neandrathals. Yes, this book goes that far back to B.C. time. The amount of research that went into this book was off the scale, but I appreciated a glimpse into each disaster. Obviously, there was a lot of discussion on the novel vius, Covid-19, and I liked all the different tidbits, observations and speculation that was mentioned.

I do agree there needs to be some organization/people globally that has a task-force for pandemics/epidemics/plagues and the issues financially. The book said, "why would anyone donate a lot of money on something that is uncertain, when you can put it towards cancer patients/researching." (paraphrased). This book said also, "Once the morbidity/mortality for Covid-19 gets to a normal, unfortunately, there will most likely be another pandemic that follows shortly. It will happen." (paraphrased).

I think every scientist and government official globally needs to read this and realize events like this will not go away. Just because there are multiple vaccines for Covid-19, there is a global population who will never receive it because of location/finance or because they will not (anti-vaxers). This population is part of the issue why there may be another pandemic that follows quickly behind in the aftermath of coronavirus aka the variants or something worse.

Highly recommended read. It was not easy reading but fascinating and necessary AF.

Thanks to Netgalley, Paul Chrystal and Pen & Sword History for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Already available: 5/30/21

[Monica Mac · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am not sure what it says about me, reading a book like this in the middle of a pandemic, but it was very interesting reading indeed.

This is a very comprehensive and well-researched book into all the pandemics etc of history right up until the current COVID pandemic. It is written from a British perspective and being Australian, it was fascinating to see the differences between the UK's handling of the pandemic and our own. With some things though, hindsight is 20/20 and in the beginning, I think most governments struggled to get their collective heads around what to do for the best. I do, however, think a lot of the Asian countries ran rings around us!

When I read about the various plagues that have come and gone through the ages, I wonder again at the good fortune that allowed my ancestors to come through it all. It sounds horrendous, having to deal with these nasty diseases without a vaccine, or even basic knowledge, in sight.

Well worth reading!

4.5 stars from me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Pen & Sword.

[Lisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a comprehensive and well-researched history of devastating illnesses since Neanderthal times. I don't think that Paul Chrystal missed anything out here! Unfortunately, it is so harrowing to read and such a litany of misery and so packed with information, that I decided to concentrate mostly on the accounts which especially interested me, such as the plague in England and Australia, the sweating sickness and the Spanish Flu. Of course, his chapter on coronavirus is fairly up-to-date and interesting. I found the history of measures taken to prevent the spread of epidemics especially interesting, for example, the origins of quarantine, social distancing and lockdowns.

He has an excellent list of suggestions for preparing for epidemics for public policy makers. Let's hope that they study his book.

I received this free ebook from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

[Katherine Hartley]

Paul Chrystal’s book takes us on an informative journey through the many pandemics, plagues and epidemics this world has seen in its history. In essence, it examines how previous contagions have shaped the world we live in today and discusses the lessons we need to learn if we are to be better prepared for the next “event”.

“Disease,” he says, “is a constant in human civilisation,” and has been “our lethal and unwelcome companion over the last 5000 years.” It is fair to say, then, that Covid-19 is simply another bad day at office. It isn’t the first pandemic this world has seen, and it certainly won’t be the last. Chrystal’s book makes that point loud and clear.

Packed full of detailed analysis and statistics, it is a must-read for students and experts alike, and reading it through the lens of our current battle with COVID-19 makes it all the more poignant.

[Lady · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a brilliant and well researched book. Looking at the history of the world major health outbreaks; including how they were dealt with. This book really opened my eyes to how bad pandemics spread, how wide spread and how very little is ever learnt to protect from further outbreaks.
I loved learning about the history of the world through a different outlook I found it very informative and extremely interesting. I couldn't put it down.
It finishes by looking at covid 19 and how different countries dealt with the pandemic showing how ill prepared the uk actually was.
So much praise to the author and publishing team for producing such an interesting and informative book. It was a pleasure to read it.
Also reviewed at many sites including amazon, waterstones etc

[thewoollygeek (tea, cake, crochet & books) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Probably not a great idea for me to read this during a pandemic, but I’ve got to admit I’ve found the plagues and pandemics in the past interesting (never imagined would live through one) This is a well written book on pandemics, plagues and epidemics in history. It is shows the effects these plagues have on people and asks what lessons if any we can learn from them. I particularly liked the details about the measures taken to prevent the spread of epidemics especially interesting, for example, the origins of quarantine, social distancing and lockdowns. It’s a really well researched book, one I can recommend thoroughly

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

[Annalisa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one very intriguing book. If you are a history fanatic like I am then this one is right up your alley. It has a great deal of background and other information about history and the plagues and pandemics that blighted the world through out time. I thought this was a very comprehensive guide to all things plague and pandemic. I definitely recommend this book.

[AcademicEditor · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting take, looking at 20 of the worst diseases to change the course of human history, from ancient times to the present. Definitely an interesting resource, especially since we are now all COVID-19 experts.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the opportunity to review a temporary digital ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.