The Ghost Map

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The Ghost Map
AuthorSteven Berlin Johnson
LanguageEnglish
PublisherRiverhead
Publication date
October 19, 2006
ISBN1594489254

The Ghost Map: The Story of London's Most Terrifying Epidemic – and How it Changed Science, Cities and the Modern World is a book by Steven Berlin Johnson in which he describes the most intense outbreak of cholera in Victorian London and centers on John Snow and Henry Whitehead.[1]

It was released on 19 October 2006 through Riverhead.

Synopsis[edit]

The work covers the 1854 Broad Street cholera outbreak. The two central figures are physician John Snow, who created a map of the cholera cases, and the Reverend Henry Whitehead, whose extensive knowledge of the local community helped determine the initial cause of the outbreak. John Snow was a revered anesthetist who carried out epidemiological work in Soho, London. Around the mid-1850s Snow figured out the source of cholera contamination to be the drinking water from the Broad Street pump.

Reception[edit]

The New York Times reviewed The Ghost Map, stating that there was "a great story here".[2] A review posted in the International Journal of Epidemiology was largely favorable, stating that "the single weakness of this book is a bewildering final section which attempts to apply John Snow's work to a long list of contemporary problems. But for the reader prepared to put the book down at page 217, Steven Johnson has written a comprehensive, diversely sourced and insightful blockbuster account of a cholera outbreak in Victorian London."[3]

Reviews

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Prusak, Larry (22 March 2007). "The Ghost Map by Steven Johnson". Harvard Business Review. ISSN 0017-8012. Retrieved 8 July 2019.
  2. ^ Quammen, David (12 November 2006). "The Ghost Map By Steven Johnson - Books - Review". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 8 July 2019.
  3. ^ Metcalfe, Chris (1 August 2007). "The Ghost Map. Steven Johnson". International Journal of Epidemiology. 36 (4): 935–936. doi:10.1093/ije/dym111. ISSN 0300-5771.