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Splendid Solution: Jonas Salk and the Conquest of Polio
In medical school when Franklin Delano Roosevelt was diagnosed with the disease shortly before assuming the Presidency, Salk was given an impetus to conduct studies on polio. His progress in combating the virus was hindered by the politics of medicine and by a rival researcher determined to discredit his proposed solution. But Salk's perseverance made history-and for more...more
Paperback, 384 pages
Published
February 7th 2006
by Berkley Trade
(first published January 27th 2005)
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Ever since my daughter read Brad Meltzer's book "Heroes for my Son" -- she has loved Jonas Salk, so when I saw this audio book on the library shelf I took it out and listened to it with my 2 children.
It was very well written and also well read. Some of it was a little long for it goes into great depth about the research that was done. The tests that were performed and the very exact science of Polio research. I must admit that for me much of this was new to me. I knew that President Roosevelt ha...more
It was very well written and also well read. Some of it was a little long for it goes into great depth about the research that was done. The tests that were performed and the very exact science of Polio research. I must admit that for me much of this was new to me. I knew that President Roosevelt ha...more
Sep 09, 2012
Paul (formerly known as Current)
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2012
This is an interesting inside look at the work, decisions, and history that led to a vaccine for polio with a focus specifically on the work of Jonas Salk. Although this book has a primary biographical focus, it none-the-less spends a good deal of its contents regarding the underlying science of immunization. It is interesting to me to see how, to a great extent, the work on the polio vaccination was not made up of giant leaps of genius or insight, but an ongoing doggedness to develop and prove...more
Finally I got around to reading the 2007 All Iowa Reads book. Public libraries around the state have been sponsoring discussions of Splendid Solution and will continue to do so throughout the year. The story starts with the polio epidemics of the early 20th century, focusing on one in Manhattan in the summer of 1916 when Jonas Salk was a toddler. Salk's later childhood and early adulthood are also put in context of major polio incidents including Franklin Roosevelt's struggle with the disease an...more
A nonfiction recommendation selected as the 2007 All Iowa Reads Book. Splendid Solution captures the race against time to find a cure for polio against the backdrop of the worst polio epidemic in U.S. history. The story weaves many themes together including Jonas Salk’s personal life, the laboratory work to find the vaccine, and politics related to funding and research. I listened to this book on disc from Tantor Media. I thought the recording was excellent and contributed to my enjoyment of the...more
This is an excellent narrative if you're looking for a rosy view of Salk's accomplishments. The author is too kind to Salk, and refuses to acknowledge any of the scientist's detractor's arguments. I suppose it's hard to do so when the close relatives of the subject of your biography provided you with all of the personal correspondence of said subject, as was the case here.
Subtitled "Jonas Salk and the Conquest of Polio." This was a very interesting history of Salk himself, and how he prepared himself to have a profound influence on medical history. Salk was the son of Jewish immigrants, and his strong-willed mother pushed him towards a career in law. But in college, he discovered a brilliant gift for chemistry and medical research.
The book describes polio in detail - its onset, symptoms, and impact. During the 1940's and early 1950's the outbreaks in the US made...more
The book describes polio in detail - its onset, symptoms, and impact. During the 1940's and early 1950's the outbreaks in the US made...more
This book was well written in many ways. It managed to teach me a lot about vaccines without being dry at all. It also conveyed the fear of the polio era well. Great photographs and historical detail.
But the reason I can only give this book 3 stars is its relentless positive spin on all of Salk's actions. It was frustrating that the book chose to focus on one main character, and then gave such a poor sense of him as a complex individual. The endless heroic spin (I got it the first time Salk's sk...more
But the reason I can only give this book 3 stars is its relentless positive spin on all of Salk's actions. It was frustrating that the book chose to focus on one main character, and then gave such a poor sense of him as a complex individual. The endless heroic spin (I got it the first time Salk's sk...more
In Splendid Solution, Jeffrey Kluger tells a thorough history of the life and career of Jonas Salk and the development of the Flue and Polio vaccines that he was instrumental in delivering to the world. I found this to be a fascinating story that shows both the technical challenges for developing vaccines as well as the confrontational and political issues involved. The scientists involved are shown to be more of a collection of domineering and passionate partisans as opposed to a group of ratio...more
This is a fascinating look at the development of the Polio vaccine. I'm just starting as I write this, but I'm drawn in big-time. I remember eating the polio sugar cubes when I was litle. They used to really stress that we need to eat it. I remember eating it out of little paper cups like sacrament cups. Delivery has sure changed since those days. I'm amazed at the rumors and fears that existed around the development of the vaccine. Columnists accused the Eisenhower administration of secretly bu...more
Polio was a feared disease of my parents' time, and other than getting the shot as a baby, hearing about March of Dimes fundraisers, and learning briefly about FDR in school, I didn't think much about it until college, when one of my peers did her senior seminar on the battle between Jonas Salk and Albert Sabin over the development of the vaccine. I don't know if she used this book for her presentation, but in retrospect, had I been in her shoes, I would have.
Obviously, the book chronicles the d...more
Obviously, the book chronicles the d...more
May 18, 2007
Meghan
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
those interested in medical breakthroughs
Very interesting. The story begins in 1916 with one of the worst polio epidemics in US history (27,000 cases of which 6,000 were fatal). Some deduced cats were carriers, and in the span of one week in July, some 72,000 were eliminated using a variety of inhumane methods.
The book continues chronologically through the life of Jonas Salk and the lives and his work in finding a polio vaccine. The author provides startling statistics on the number of people afflicted (mostly children). In 1937, Fran...more
The book continues chronologically through the life of Jonas Salk and the lives and his work in finding a polio vaccine. The author provides startling statistics on the number of people afflicted (mostly children). In 1937, Fran...more
This was a fascinating biography of Jonas Salk’s life, his choice of career in face of his parent’s desire that he become a Rabbi, the development of his polio vaccine and all the opposition he faced from fellow scientists, who not only disagreed with his goals and methods, but publically ridiculed him. I hope to read more biographies by this author. I was in school and would have been a likely candidate to have received the Salk vaccine. I wish I could remember if I did.
Great book! I felt like I was not just reading about the polio epidemic, but was actually experiencing it first-hand. I especially enjoyed the scientific and ethical debates, such as passive/active immunity, live/killed virus, and double-blind/observed controls. I was intrigued by the political and logistical challenges faced by Salk and his team.
My only criticism is that the book ended rather abruptly. I would have liked to have seen more coverage of the field trial - and subsequent roll-out -...more
My only criticism is that the book ended rather abruptly. I would have liked to have seen more coverage of the field trial - and subsequent roll-out -...more
I really liked this book! It was interesting to gain some perspective on how parents and the world were terrorized of their children falling victim to polio. Jonas Salk was quite a character and I'm glad that Kluger was able to bring his story to readers. The conquest of polio was indeed an important time in science, medicine, technology, and many other fields. It affected the lives of so many and I think that we take this epidemic for granted as polio has essentially been eradicated. I apprecia...more
Another great read in the summer of disease history. There is a good deal of time spent on the dragging days and months spent in the lab waiting on results or having to re-start experiments. Maybe the author intended for the reader to experience it...
Seems like a boring subject, but it wasn't at all. This is the story of Jonas Salk and his quest to find a polio vaccine. I was prompted to read this after seeing a play about Jonas Salk and hearing a review of the book on TV. Good choice.
Whoever would have thought that the race to develop a polio vaccine would have been so fascinating? Kluger tells a fast-paced and extremely interesting story, which makes me glad I was born just after the Salk vaccine was developed!
This book was both educational and interesting. I was fascinated by the struggles to find a vacine for polio, also all the politics involved.
This book details the life of Jonas Salk, his rise as a scientist, and the race to find a cure for polio. Read this for book club.
Relatively easy read, but too light on the science in my opinion. Brings up issues like the seasonal nature of polio but never delves into them. Also takes too positive of an outlook on Salk's work. The first human trials of his vaccine were conducted on mentally disabled children but the ethics of this is never even discussed in the book.
Book club pick. Dramatic real life story behind the discovery that made Polio not so scary.
This was a book club book that I probably wouldn't have bumped into on my own, but I was pleasantly surprised by it. You know what happens at the end because it's historical, so it's to the author's credit that you can still become so involved in the story leading up to it. I especially liked how he described the atmosphere of fear and uncertainty during the polio epidemics of the middle half of the 20th century. He also does a great job of explaining the science of vaccinations to someone with...more
An interesting account of the development of the polio vaccine by Jonas Salk & his colleagues.
This read like a thriller - couldn't put it down.
Completely fascinating.
Great story about how "soft" human factors can interfere with hard science, even when the motivation is to save children from paralysis. Great read so far.
Learned some about polio and developing vaccines. E.g., Did you know Salk tested early flu vaccines on conscientious objectors from WW2? I also didn't realize how iffy some of the early vaccines were. Although they tested on primates first, some children died in some of the early tests on people. Salk actually vaccinated himself, his wife, and his two sons -- safely.
Didn't finish because it was just too much detail about one guy and vaccine-making (yawn).
Didn't finish because it was just too much detail about one guy and vaccine-making (yawn).
Jan 20, 2009
Anna
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Anna by:
Paul Nibley
Shelves:
nonfiction
Despite its title, this book was a page-turner. The story reminds me of how lucky we are to have vaccinations for all the horrible (mostly childhood) diseases that crippled or killed thousands each year. It worries me that so many parents are revolting against vaccinations these days. I realize many of their fears are real but, when they do this, they threaten their own children and they invite the now rare disease back into society.
Ok, so I know a book about the polio vaccine doesn't sounds super interesting, but really was! Not only was it educational but it was a page turner.
I found this book fascinating. This book covered the history of polio in the 20th century in the US, as well as the history of developing a polio vacine. I had a hard time putting this book down. There was just enough science to teach me something, but not too much to make it difficult to read or understand. Overall, it was a well written book.
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Jeffrey Kluger is a senior writer for TIME. He joined TIME as a contributor in 1996, and was named a senior writer in 1998. He has written a number of cover stories, including reports on the connection between sex and health, the Mars Pathfinder landing, the loss of the shuttle Columbia, and the collision aboard the Mir space station.
In 2002, Mr. Kluger along with two other colleagues, won First P...more
More about Jeffrey Kluger...
In 2002, Mr. Kluger along with two other colleagues, won First P...more
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