Review: Polio: An American Story by David M. Oshinsky

Title: Polio: An American Story
Author: David M. Oshinsky
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (first published 2005)
Publication Date: April 1, 2005
Edition: Hardcover (342 pages)
Genres:

• Nonfiction
• Biography
• Disease
• History
• Infantile Paralysis
• Medicine
• United States History

Polio: An American Story by David M. Oshinsky

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

David M. Oshinsky tells the story of Polio in America, its potential causes, effects and the research and race to develop a safe vaccine. Not only does he provide a historical perspective in terms of the disease, itself, but he also paints a word portrait of the key players in research, their larger than life personalities and their rivalries (sometimes life-long).

This book is so much more than a chronicle of the times and events. As I read, it took me back to the early 1900's when science was coming into its own, and great strides were made in industry, medicine and elevation of living standards for many. Scientific and medical research was largely unregulated, and it fell to private and philanthropic organizations to raise money for the conduct of this research.

As a child of the late 1950's, I remember standing in line, on a Sunday afternoon, to receive my Polio vaccine. I remember both my parents being so relieved that this disease was at last likely being vanquished. The times were serious. The cold war was on, and civil defense drills were a part of life.

I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in history, science, medicine, or anyone who simply wants to read an interesting and rather dramatic true story.