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Susanna - Censored by GoodReads
Started reading a book purportedly about the Spanish Flu, but so far is actually about the history of medical practice in the United States. Also if he calls Johns Hopkins University "The Hopkins" a few more times I'm going to smack him. Or his book, which will be closer to me. (I'm having flashbacks to Sean Wilentz and his freaking "The Democracy.")

ETA: 40% in and we're finally starting to deal with the flu epidemic. That's a long set-up section!
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Mary
Oct 10, 2018 rated it it was amazing
Shelves: science
Barry’s The Great Influenza did send me scurrying off to get my flu shot. But his book is about so much more that the 1918 Pandemic. The development and history of the medical profession is interesting to read about. He describes the dedicated, brilliant, men and women who work in research labs figuring things out like DNA, viruses, and bacteria.

It look me awhile to read this because I took the book on a trip in 2014 and lost it. But wanting to read this book I was enjoying so much, I finally g
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Sunshine
Dec 27, 2020 rated it it was ok
It took me months and months, but I finally made it through this long and arduous book. While the information and retelling of this historic time in U.S. history was exceptional, this felt like 2 books that had been put under one title, and I found it frustrating. Barry spends the first third of this book capturing the history of medical science and the men (there was only 2-3 women of mention at the time) who were shaping this field in North America. Yes, the exploration of this topic is releva ...more
Mitchell Friedman
Exhausting. And uneven. And kind of a misdirection. To a large degree this really isn't a history the Great Influenza Pandemic of 1918. Instead its more of a history of the beginnings of modern investigative medicine, especially in the United States. The beginning of this book was a trudge that seemed like it would never get to the point. The Afterword reads like it could have been written last year with only very few changes and was absolutely the best part. And there is the bit when Influenza ...more
Kathleen (itpdx)
Nov 26, 2012 rated it really liked it
In this book focused on the 1918 flu pandemic, Barry develops several themes-medical education and research in the US, responses by various communities and government entities to the crisis, and the mental skills, and personality types that make successful researchers. The afterward of this edition discusses the US's and the world's preparedness for the next flu pandemic.

Barry does a very good job with the medical education and research piece as well as the various group responses. They are fas
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Anna
Oct 28, 2007 marked it as to-read
Betty
Jun 28, 2008 rated it really liked it
Heather
Dec 28, 2010 marked it as to-read
Shelves: non-fiction
Daniella Gullans
Mar 16, 2011 rated it really liked it
Sarah Ngaothong
Apr 12, 2011 rated it really liked it
Robert
Sep 30, 2011 marked it as to-read
Gaijinmama
Sep 24, 2012 marked it as to-read
Hollyy
Mar 17, 2025 rated it really liked it
Brooke
Jan 11, 2013 rated it liked it
Shelves: non-fiction
Holly
Sep 07, 2015 marked it as to-read
David
Jul 19, 2016 marked it as to-read
Shelves: next-to-read
Edie Kestenbaum
Sep 21, 2018 marked it as to-read
Sterling
Apr 07, 2020 marked it as to-read
Amanda
Apr 12, 2020 marked it as to-read
Shelves: pop-sci, history
Britt Aamodt
Apr 15, 2020 rated it really liked it
David S. T.
May 28, 2020 rated it really liked it  ·  review of another edition
Erica
May 20, 2020 marked it as to-read
Britt Aamodt
May 21, 2020 rated it it was amazing  ·  review of another edition
Chris Stanford
Dec 20, 2020 rated it really liked it  ·  review of another edition
Shelves: 2020, nonfiction, history
Don
Oct 20, 2020 rated it really liked it
Timothy Finucane
Dec 10, 2020 rated it really liked it
Lance
Oct 10, 2020 marked it as to-read
Erica
Nov 07, 2020 marked it as to-read
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