The book authored by the two leading scientists of the country, Seyed Ehtesham Hasnain and Arun Tewari, focuses on the Covid 19 pandemic, with all its dimensions and hues and forms. A book review by Humra Quraishi
This book authored by the two leading scientists of the country, Seyed Ehtesham Hasnain and Arun Tewari, focuses on the Covid 19 pandemic, with all its dimensions and hues and forms.
Yes, as I read through this book, it got writ large that every aspect to the Covid 19 pandemic seems to be focused on. Written for the common man, it answers all those queries that we often think aloud: Why the infection hit the vital organs of one patient but spared that of the other? Why only minor symptoms surfaced in some whilst others were down by more than one symptom? What if in future a pandemic of this nature strikes? What is our collective future vis-à-vis this virus still hovering around …lurking? What are the chances of it striking yet again? Who all are to be blamed for this level of health disasters hitting this planet, destroying lives and livelihoods?
Actually this book has to be read to get answers to all possible doubts and apprehensions and the ground realities that exist today in the context of the virus and the dilemmas and tragedies spread around.
Besides addressing the various aspects to the pandemic, what I found rather interesting is the fact that the authors have taken the trouble of researching and brining to the fore, all aspects and details about the past pandemics that hit mankind. “Though there had been many endemics in the 20th century —Manchurian plague in 1910, United States poliomyelitis in 1916, Russian Typhus during 1918-22, Indian Smallpox in 1974, West African meningitis in 1996, Malaysian Nipah virus in 1998 — none of them crossed national boundaries, leave aside international boundaries…”
What makes this book very readable is that webbed and inter-webbed in, are many details of the human happenings. To quote one such ‘happening’ from the book – “In 1939, American journalist Katherine Anne Porter (1890 – 1980) published a novel ‘Pale Horse, Pale Rider’, brilliantly capturing the human tragedy of the pandemic. The novel narrated a love story between a soldier of an occupying army and a woman who sold newspapers in the street with 1918 Influenza pandemic in the backdrop. The woman, Miranda, got infected and was cared for by the soldier, Adam. During her illness the woman ran high fever and got disoriented. By the time she recovered, Adam had succumbed to the infection, which most likely he got while nursing her.”
Title of the book – DECODING THE PANDEMIC
Authors – Seyed Ehtesham Hasnain and Arun Tiwari
Publishers – Sakal Publications
Pages – 254
Price –Rs 599
