Tuesday, August 6, 2019

The Outsize Role of the Mosquito in the Sweep of Human History


For a tiny insect the mosquito has had a major role in shaping human history. Yellow Fever, Dengue Fever, Malaria, West Nile Virus, and other diseases are caused by agents injected into the human host by one or another of the species of mosquitoes in the environment. The early chapters of the book give a graphic description of the diseases and suffering. It makes you want to wear protective gear when going outside in the summer.

For centuries it was unclear that the mosquito was responsible for the scourge of diseases that wrecked havoc with armies and empires. The American Revolution saw Washington’s army as well as the British ransacked by malaria. The scourge of the Civil War and building the Panama Canal was Yellow Fever.

One of the protections against malaria is sickle cell anemia, a mutation of the blood cells that survived in Africa because it gave protection to the person. Unfortunately, sickle cell itself is a killer, as the author points out.

I enjoyed this book. It’s full of historical information about the interaction between mosquitoes and humans. The writing is clear and subject matter so interesting you want to keep reading. I highly recommend this book if you want to learn more about how the environment can affect civilization.

I received this book from Dutton for this review.


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