Credit McNeil for a succinct summary of Zika to date, but be forewarned: this is a fast-breaking story, and the last word...
Frightening words on the Zika virus from a reliable source: a New York Times science reporter who has covered virulent global infections for decades.
McNeil notes that the mosquito-borne Zika virus was first isolated from a monkey in Uganda’s Zika Forest in 1947 but had probably circulated in Africa for ages, rendering many immune. Sporadic cases subsequently occurred in Africa, but by the 1960s, it had moved to Asia and crossed to Pacific islands, causing outbreaks in Micronesia in 2007 and in Tahiti in 2013, where the first cases of Guillain-Barré paralysis were noted. Though the situation was serious, there were no reports of microcephaly. The virus continued its progression around the world, landing in Brazil in 2015, where the first cases of microcephaly were documented. Why the epidemic appeared in Brazil remains a mystery, but there is no mystery about the havoc the virus causes. Scores of laboratories have established that the virus kills developing brain cells, leading to microcephaly or to blindness, deafness, and other devastation. The virus is also found in abundance in semen, so not only is there a risk of Zika infection from a mosquito bite to a pregnant woman, but infection can also occur through intercourse. The race is on, McNeil relates, to fathom how the virus causes its damage and to develop treatments and ultimately a vaccine. Of course, that could be a long process, hence the issuance of government guidelines on using repellants, destroying standing water sources, and using condoms. The author rightly takes to task delays by health agencies and the World Health Organization in issuing advisories—caused by fears of offending sovereign nations and the Roman Catholic Church, effects on tourism, and so on—and he ends the text with a useful Q-and-A addressing current knowledge as of June 2016.
Credit McNeil for a succinct summary of Zika to date, but be forewarned: this is a fast-breaking story, and the last word has yet to come, including how Zika will affect the American population as it journeys north.Pub Date: July 5, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-393-60914-1
Page Count: 208
Publisher: Norton
Review Posted Online: June 27, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s...
Music journalist and musician Wald (Talking 'Bout Your Mama: The Dozens, Snaps, and the Deep Roots of Rap, 2014, etc.) focuses on one evening in music history to explain the evolution of contemporary music, especially folk, blues, and rock.
The date of that evening is July 25, 1965, at the Newport Folk Festival, where there was an unbelievably unexpected occurrence: singer/songwriter Bob Dylan, already a living legend in his early 20s, overriding the acoustic music that made him famous in favor of electronically based music, causing reactions ranging from adoration to intense resentment among other musicians, DJs, and record buyers. Dylan has told his own stories (those stories vary because that’s Dylan’s character), and plenty of other music journalists have explored the Dylan phenomenon. What sets Wald's book apart is his laser focus on that one date. The detailed recounting of what did and did not occur on stage and in the audience that night contains contradictory evidence sorted skillfully by the author. He offers a wealth of context; in fact, his account of Dylan's stage appearance does not arrive until 250 pages in. The author cites dozens of sources, well-known and otherwise, but the key storylines, other than Dylan, involve acoustic folk music guru Pete Seeger and the rich history of the Newport festival, a history that had created expectations smashed by Dylan. Furthermore, the appearances on the pages by other musicians—e.g., Joan Baez, the Weaver, Peter, Paul, and Mary, Dave Van Ronk, and Gordon Lightfoot—give the book enough of an expansive feel. Wald's personal knowledge seems encyclopedic, and his endnotes show how he ranged far beyond personal knowledge to produce the book.
An enjoyable slice of 20th-century music journalism almost certain to provide something for most readers, no matter one’s personal feelings about Dylan's music or persona.Pub Date: July 25, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-06-236668-9
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Dey Street/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: May 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 1, 2015
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
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