Bubonic Panic: When Plague Invaded America
by Gail Jarrow
Calkins Creek (May 10, 2016)
Nonfiction * History * Disease and Illness
Audience: Ages 10 and up
Indiebound | Worldcat
Teacher's Guide
About the book:
In March 1900, San Francisco’s health department investigated a strange and horrible death in Chinatown. A man had died of bubonic plague, one of the world’s deadliest diseases. But how could that be possible? Bubonic Panic tells the true story of America’s first plague epidemic—the public health doctors who desperately fought to end it, the political leaders who tried to keep it hidden, and the brave scientists who uncovered the plague’s secrets. Once again, acclaimed author and scientific expert Gail Jarrow brings the history of a medical mystery to life in vivid and exciting detail for young readers. This title includes photographs and drawings, a glossary, a timeline, further resources, an author’s note, and source notes.
My thoughts on the book:
Years ago, I read Connie Willis' Doomsday Book (Oxford Time Travel #1). The premise of the book dealt with plagues - one in the future and one in the past. A character in the future, a graduate
student studying history, travels back in time and ends up in the middle of the Black Plague. It was a fascinating story concept. Imagine being vaccinated against the exact plague that is infecting a whole village. The book haunted me for years and probably was one of the reasons that out of the three titles in Gail Jarrow's Deadly Diseases Trilogy that BUBONIC PANIC was the one I was most eager to read.
And Jarrow doesn't disappoint. Similar to her previous two books, readers are drawn into the book, led through history and in this case to the United States and the plague's arrival in San Francisco. I was fascinated to learn of the history of the plague and also how in the 19th and early 20th century scientists, doctors, health workers and others worked to educate people in order to stop the plague. Through the use of photographs, illustrations, and news headlines, Jarrow adds an additional element of reality for young readers who may be learning about the plague for the first time.
End resources:
At the end of the book, Jarrow includes of glossary of key terms, a timeline, web resources, bibliography and source notes.
Don't miss out on BUBONIC PANIC. Pick up a copy at your local indie bookstore or library.
Check out the other books in Jarrow's Deadly Diseases series:
About the author:
Gail Jarrow’s nonfiction books have received numerous awards and distinctions, including YALSA Nonfiction Award Nominations, an NCTE Orbis Pictus Recommended Book, National Science Teachers Association Recommended Book, Kirkus Reviews and School Library Journal Best Books of the Year, and a VOYA Honor Book. A graduate of Duke University and Dartmouth College, she lives in Ithaca, New York. Visit her online at gailjarrow.com.
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