A History of the World in Six Plagues

This history looks at six diseases: cholera, HIV/AIDS, the Spanish Flu, Sleeping Sickness, Ebola and COVID-19. The book argues that epidemics begin by chance but become catastrophic through human choices. It describes how outbreaks have widened racial, economic and sociopolitical divides. The story moves from Port-au-Prince to Tanzania and from plantation-era America to the age of COVID-19. Drawing on research and cultural analysis, it traces patterns of discrimination in the face of disease, set against unequal public policy. It also calls for change in healthcare and policy.

Why You Should Read?

• Explore six epidemics, from cholera and HIV/AIDS to the Spanish Flu, Sleeping Sickness, Ebola and COVID-19.
• Understand why the book argues that outbreaks become catastrophic through human design rather than chance.
• Follow the book's path from Port-au-Prince to Tanzania, plantation-era America and the COVID-19 era.
• Consider the book's case for change in healthcare and policy, and how unequal policy shapes who suffers.