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The Great Mortality : An Intimate History of the Black Death, The Most Devastating Plague of All Time (P.S.)
The Great Mortality An Intimate History of the Black Death The Most Devastating Plague of All Time - P.S. Author:John Kelly In October 1347, at about the start of the month, twelve Genoese galleys put in to the port of Messina [Italy]. So begins, in almost fairy-tale fashion, a contemporary account of the worst natural disaster in European history -- what we call the Black Death, and what the generation who lived through it called la moria grandissima: "the great mor... more »tality." The medieval plague, however, was more than just a European catastrophe. From the bustling ports along the China Sea to the fishing villages of coastal Greenland, almost no area of Eurasia escaped the wrath of the medieval pestilence. And along with people died dogs, cats, chickens, sheep, cattle, and camels. For a brief moment in the middle of the fourteenth century, the words of Genesis 7:21 seemed about to be realized: "All flesh died that moved upon the earth." The Great Mortality is John Kelly's compelling narrative account of the medieval plague, from its beginnings on the desolate, windswept steppes of Central Asia to its journey through the teeming cities of Europe. "This is the end of the world," wrote a bootblack of the pestilence's arrival in his native Siena. The Great Mortality paints a vivid picture of what the end of the world looked like, circa 1348 and 1349: bodies packed like "lasagna" in municipal plague pits, collection carts winding through the streets early in the morning to pick up the dead, desperate crowds crouched over municipal latrines inhaling noxious fumes in hopes of inoculating themselves against the plague, children abandoning infected parents -- and parents, infected children. The Great Mortality also looks at new theories about the cause of the plague and takes into account why some scientists and historians believe that the Black Death was an outbreak not of bubonic plague, but of another infectious illness -- perhaps anthrax or a disease like Ebola. Interweaving a modern scientific methodical analysis with an evocative portrait of medieval medicine, superstition, and bigotry, The Great Mortality achieves an air of immediacy, authenticity, and intimacy never before seen in literature on the plague. Drawing on the latest research, it unwraps the mystery that shrouds the disease and offers a new and fascinating look into the complex forces that went into the making of the Black Death.« less
Holly E. (Holl286) reviewed The Great Mortality : An Intimate History of the Black Death, The Most Devastating Plague of All Time (P.S.) on + 25 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
At some points he get a little carried away discussing the geography of
Europe, and you find yourself continuously fliping back to the map in the front of the book. However, he also makes the "Black Death" more real by putting names and details of individuals' livlihoods in. You become transported back to the fourteenth century.
Nancy A. (Chocoholic) reviewed The Great Mortality : An Intimate History of the Black Death, The Most Devastating Plague of All Time (P.S.) on + 291 more book reviews
This book was on my wishlist for some time because I was genuinely interested in the Black Plague period of history. This book made me seriously question my interests, not because of gruesome details but because the book is so dry. The author spends almost 100 pages describing the geography of Europe and Asia in excruciatingly painful detail, but I persevered. He personified the plague virus as some sort of nomad wandering around Europe, infecting whenever and wherever it liked. Occasionally he sprinkled little vignettes about a person's experience with the plague here and there, but nearly smothers the readers' interest by layering heavy doses of statistics and percentages and other boring facts on top. In one memorable chapter he points out the ill treatment of the Jews when angry Europeans blamed them for the plague, but not before he systematically points out every single crime against the Jewish people since 66 AD, and goes on for 20 pages before finally getting back to his point. This book really reads like a dry textbook and has no discernible plot to it (yes, even nonfiction books can have a plot). Finally the author throws in big, medical words that will send you running for a dictionary. I hope there are better books about the plague out there, because this isn't one of them.
Laura J. (LauraJ) - , reviewed The Great Mortality : An Intimate History of the Black Death, The Most Devastating Plague of All Time (P.S.) on + 35 more book reviews
A fascinating history of the devastating 14th century plague outbreak. The author brings the period to life with details of daily life and personal accounts. At times, the descriptions can be quite graphic, so it is not recommended as mealtime reading.
