Humanity's Burden: A Global History of Malaria

Studies in Environment and History

by James L.A. Webb Jr.

Humanity’s Burden provides a panoramic overview of the history of malaria. It traces the long arc of malaria out of tropical Africa into Eurasia, its transfer to the Americas during the early years of the Columbian exchange, and its retraction from the middle latitudes into the tropics since the late nineteenth century. Adopting a broadly comparative approach to historical patterns and processes, it synthesizes research findings from the natural and social sciences and weaves these understandings into a narrative that reaches from the earliest evidence of malaria infections in tropical Africa up to the present. Written in a style that is easily accessible to non-specialists, it considers the significance of genetic mutations, diet, lifestyle, migration, warfare, palliative and curative treatment, and efforts to interrupt transmission on the global distribution of malaria.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, History, Medicine

250 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2008

About the author

Dr. James L.A. Webb Jr. is a historian who specializes in ecological history and historical epidemiology. He is Professor Emeritus of History at Colby College.

Webb's work endeavors to integrate approaches from the biological sciences and the social sciences to produce perspectives that are useful to historians, practitioners, and planners in the field of global public health. He is the founding editor of the series Perspectives on Global Health and the Series in Ecology and History at the Ohio University Press.

Reviews

[Gwenyth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Worth reading if you are working on something malaria-related and want to get a broader historical view of the subject. I liked "The Making of a Tropical Disease" more, but this is worth reading alongside... "Humanity's Burden" presents a general picture of the history of malaria, "the Making of" seems to get into subtleties a bit more but is less an easy read.

[Pete · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is high quality book on the history of malaria

[Gavin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Worthy, thoughtful, and on one of the most important topics in the history of the world. Didn't know that malaria was one of the many curses of the Columbian Exchange: it wasn't even on the continent before us. It was, however, prevalent in the marshes of Essex.

Not useful per se, but it gives you a sense of the size and ancestry of the beast we are hunting.

(4/5 iff you're already motivated by wanting mosquitoes dead)


(Notable for being one of the most hideous book covers I've ever seen.)

[Erika · Rating 3 out of 5]

I recently started working in malaria, and I wanted to learn more about the disease. I enjoyed the early history (early peoples) presented through colonization. The author did not spend as much time exploring the mid 1900s, during which there was a global eradication effort and improving understanding public health. I am eager to learn more about these areas. Overall, I enjoyed the read.

[Cliff Landesman · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice history of malaria.