An engrossing and lively history of the fearsome and mythologized virus
In the tradition of The Emperor of All Maladies and The Great Influenza, journalist Bill Wasik and veterinarian Monica Murphy chart the history, science, and cultural mythology of rabies. In the absence of vaccinationโ as was true for thousands of years, until the late nineteenth centuryโthe rabies virus caused brain infections with a nearly 100 percent fatality rate, both in animals and humans, and the suffering it inflicted became the stuff of legend.
The transmission of the virusโoften from rabid dog to manโreawakened a primal fear of wild animals, and the illnessโs violent symptoms spoke directly to mankindโs fear of the beast within. The cultural response was to create fictional embodiments of those anxietiesโravenous wolfmen, bloodsucking vampires, and armies of mindless zombies.
From the myth of Actaeon to Saint Hubert, from the laboratories of the heroic and pioneering Louis Pasteur to a journalistic investigation into the madness that has gripped modern Bali, Rabid is a fresh, fascinating, and often wildly entertaining look at one of the worldโs most misunderstood viruses.
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Studio 360 - March 9, 2013 All Things Considered - July 19, 2012
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