Who would enjoy reading a book detailing the history of a terrible disease? I would. I enjoyed reading The Black Death: A History From Beginning to End by Henry Freeman. Ever since I took a public heath class as an undergraduate, public health and epidemiology has fascinated me to some degree. When the plague went through during the 1300's people didn't know that rats and fleas carried the disease. Was the plague caused by sin? Failure to tithe to the church? People didn't know for sure. All they knew was two out of three people were dying. The volume of dead bodies was overwhelming and cities resorted to digging trenches for burial instead of individual graves. The number of deaths changed the economy. With fewer people, the labor force gained power. The plague is partially the reason for the end of the feudal system. Who knew that a communicable disease could have such a global influence? Fascinating!
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