An American Plague

Murphy, Jim. An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793. Clarion, 2003. 165pp. Lexile 1130.

In 1793, yellow fever swept Philadelphia, then the nation’s temporary capital, a tragedy brilliantly recounted in this Sibert Award Winner and Newbery Honor Book.  The topic is inherently intriguing and Murphy’s enthusiasm for the topic comes across clearly. The author brings to life key figures like Dr. Benjamin Rush and lesser known ones such as members of the Free African Society who nursed the sick.  The dynamic text, which targets the reader’s senses with quotes about sights, sounds, and smells, looks at how yellow fever came to the city, how it spread, and how various segments of the city reacted.  Doctors tried to treat it, with very limited knowledge, disagreeing with each other on the best approach.  With the national government centered in Philadelphia, the political consequences were severe.  A readable open design effectively uses maps, newspaper clippings, etchings, and other visuals that combine with the excellent writing to make this one of the best nonfiction books for teens.

Fiction tie-ins:  Pair this with Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson or Path of the Pale Horse by Paul Fleischman (out of print), both excellent novels about the yellow fever epidemic, set in Philadelphia.

Invincible Microbe: Tuberculosis and the Never-Ending Search for a Cure

Murphy, Jim, and Alison Blank. Invincible Microbe: Tuberculosis and the Never-Ending Search for a Cure. Clarion, 2012. 160pp. Lexile 1200

Murphy and Blank make tuberculosis fascinating through a compelling narrative laced with well-chosen anecdotes and grim details.  They open with discussion and photographs of 500,000-year-old skulls and ancient mummies from around the world that show signs of TB.  The chapters then move through history, chronicling the statistics about TB over the years and the sometimes horrible attempts to cure it.  It was linked in the nineteenth century with creativity; Keats, Shelley, Poe, Robert Louis Stevenson, the Brontes and Chopin all suffered from it.  Several rich chapters describe sanatoriums in Europe and the U.S., small worlds unto themselves.  Moving into the twentieth century, the narrative shows progress in public health and science that helped reduce TB's spread but the book wraps up with appalling information about TB's role in the world today.  Historic black-and-white etchings, photographs and memorabilia appear every page or two.  Back matter includes a bibliography, source notes, and an index.

Fiction Tie-in:  Pair this with Queen of Hearts,  Martha Brook's excellent 2011 novel about a teenage girl at a Canadian TB sanatorium in the early 1940s.