Book Review
Title: A Planet of Viruses by Carl Zimmer
Genre: Non-Fiction, Science, Medical
Rating: 3 Stars
The opening to Zimmer’s Planet of Viruses wasn’t as interesting as I’d hoped for. It introduces us to what a virus really is and how they were discovered and while many might not know all the details it isn’t really anything new. The first two chapters continue this trend discussing the development of viruses and how they spread which again is something known to most. It begins to get a little interesting as we look deeper into specific viruses throughout time beginning with bird flu from 2009. It is common knowledge for those within scientific fields that certain species of animals have illnesses that can be transmitted to humans and birds are one of these species. However, when discussing the flu itself it doesn’t provide many details which was a disappointment.
The next virus we look at is HPV and this is something most women will be aware of in some capacity. HPV was the first virus investigated and it provided a lot of the information we know about cancerous viruses today. It began with the tale of the Jack rabbit which is a rabbit creature said to have horns. However, when the horns were examined under a microscope, they turned out be biological growths caused by a virus. This virus turned out to be HPV and the way it acted in both animal and human cells gave us great insights that would be used decades later to identify and treat such conditions. We also learn that the ocean contained trillions of viruses, but most are unable to be contracted by humans, but it doesn’t give us the context that we know so little about viruses considering how often they mutate and shuffle genes. We also seem to put most of our research into the viruses that can or could affect humans meaning there are billions out there we know nothing about which is frightening thought.
A further interesting thing to note is that vaccines for viruses like the flu and common cold need to topped up every year because the vaccine itself only covers certain strains of the rhinoviruses which can mutate rapidly. However, the argument must be made for natural immunity especially concerning viruses that don’t really have any severe side effects or consequences like rhinoviruses. We then move onto the viruses that naturally inhabit our bodies and what this means when looking at viruses as a whole.
The following chapter primarily focuses on endogenous retroviruses, which are viruses that naturally occur within the body and how they operate. These are a little different to other viruses since they are naturally found within our bodies for a variety of reasons which means we don’t normally fall ill with these viruses however, there are time where we do, and this usually comes down to an issue with the immune system. The next two chapters look at specific viruses that can be treated but currently there is no cure and those are HIV and West Nile. HIV is something most of us are educated on during sexual education in school, but many might not know it seems to have come from our primate cousins who suffer with a similar condition SIV. West Nile on the other hand is curable and treatable but since there is a lack of interest in the virus due to where in the world it tends to crop up no effort has been put into trailing a vaccine for humans even though it is available for animals.
The next chapter looks at COVID-19, many of my readers will already know my opinion and stance on this virus but I was willing to hear the author’s argument. Said argument was weak at best and completely incorrect at worst, so there won’t be a lot of information on this. this was disappointing since it was the longest and final chapter in the book. The conclusion does touch on vaccination and immunity, but I found the information in the book to be lacking overall. Typically, from a book like this I want far more science than case studies to show the facts and realities of illness in this modern age and throughout history which this book didn’t provide. A lot of the information on well-known viruses like the common cold and smallpox might already been known to many readers and it doesn’t provide much more so it was a mid-read.
Buy it here:
Paperback/Hardcover: amazon.co.uk amazon.com
Kindle Edition: amazon.co.uk amazon.com
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