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And the Waters Turned to Blood
In this account, Rodney Barker tells the full and terrifying story of a microorganism popping up along the Eastern seaboard—far closer to home than the Ebola virus and equally frightening. In the coastal waters of North Carolina—and now extending as far north as the Chesapeake Bay area—a mysterious and deadly aquatic organism named Pfiesteria piscicida threatens to unleash an environmental nightmare and human tragedy of catastrophic proportions. At the very center of this narrative is the heroic effort of Dr. JoAnn Burkholder and her colleagues, embattled and dedicated scientists confronting medical, political, and corporate powers to understand and conquer this new scourge before it claims more victims.
363 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 1997
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
January 4, 2015
Couldn't put it down! This book kept my attention from the first paragraph. The researcher worked at my university and if I had been able to take her class (it was a grad class and I was an undergrad), I totally would have!
February 28, 2014
The one aspect of this book I want to highlight is the disparate treatment of male scientists and female scientists. Dr. JoAnn Burkholder isn't taken seriously because of her young age, which most often is for good reason, since most often intellectual integrity grows and strengthens over time. But she is also pushed aside from serious scientific pursuits and consideration for research grants and help from other scientists because she is--wait for it--a woman. As a society, we act like this is a milestone in the past--women have equal rights, women can do anything a man can do, gender roles are a thing of the past. But the ugly truth is, much as And Then The Waters Turned To Blood blatantly shows, women still aren't taken seriously.
And take a gander at who wrote this story about a woman struggling to carve a niche for herself in the male-laden hard sciences world--Rodney Barker, a man. Even with this book, that sympathizes and calls and possibly grovels at times for the world to look at Burkholder with admiration and listen to her with an intent, absorbing, eager ear, Burkholder is only being heard through the voice of a man. How darkly humorous that is!
Kudos to the author for how he weaves the scientific and the human together, blending the edges of the human concern and scientist concern. He is able to give the hard facts while also blending in narrative. The balance works well.
And take a gander at who wrote this story about a woman struggling to carve a niche for herself in the male-laden hard sciences world--Rodney Barker, a man. Even with this book, that sympathizes and calls and possibly grovels at times for the world to look at Burkholder with admiration and listen to her with an intent, absorbing, eager ear, Burkholder is only being heard through the voice of a man. How darkly humorous that is!
Kudos to the author for how he weaves the scientific and the human together, blending the edges of the human concern and scientist concern. He is able to give the hard facts while also blending in narrative. The balance works well.
September 5, 2013
Who knew that a book on algae could be such a page turner?! I didn't. I loved this book. I think it does a great job educating you on a serious issue that not many people know about. I really enjoyed reading about the initial discovery, the denial of the algae, the symptoms, etc. I am a biology teacher and every semester I tell my students this story. I am so glad I read this book so that I could share this fascinating information with others.
August 5, 2011
Very badly written. I couldn't finish it.
September 18, 2013
So this book I did actually get through, plodding along thinking "this just HAS to get better." It doesn't.
Cliff notes version: university researcher (read moronic genius) discovers a new animal form that had previously been believed to be a plant, and this animal version is highly toxic to fish killing them almost instantly. They start to feed and grow this highly toxic creature (Little Shop of Horrors anyone?) and inadvertanly poison themselves to the point of having all of the symptoms of full blown alzheimers but not death, open sores but not skin all falling off. Turns out that the fabulous air filters weren't actually venting the toxic air into the general outside air 12 times every hour so the air inside was highly toxic but the neighbors weren't poisoned by her moronic studies.
At the end all I came away with was this: I'm amazed that these idiots get funding year after year to study toxic stuff and don't thing to themselves 'Gee, maybe it wouldn't be so fabulous to make the neighbors breathe this stuff either.'
This book will be back at Powells soon if they'll buy it back. Now I know why the library didn't have any copies of this stupid read.
Cliff notes version: university researcher (read moronic genius) discovers a new animal form that had previously been believed to be a plant, and this animal version is highly toxic to fish killing them almost instantly. They start to feed and grow this highly toxic creature (Little Shop of Horrors anyone?) and inadvertanly poison themselves to the point of having all of the symptoms of full blown alzheimers but not death, open sores but not skin all falling off. Turns out that the fabulous air filters weren't actually venting the toxic air into the general outside air 12 times every hour so the air inside was highly toxic but the neighbors weren't poisoned by her moronic studies.
At the end all I came away with was this: I'm amazed that these idiots get funding year after year to study toxic stuff and don't thing to themselves 'Gee, maybe it wouldn't be so fabulous to make the neighbors breathe this stuff either.'
This book will be back at Powells soon if they'll buy it back. Now I know why the library didn't have any copies of this stupid read.
June 10, 2010
oK, if you want a medical mystery/conflict between scientist and bureaucracy that will scare you, read this book. The story of a nautical botanist who is drawn into the study of a unicellular animal that morphs into forms to poison and devour its prey, anything alive, is compelling. Her fight with the North Carolina environmental and health agencies who want to suppress her discoveries--that this microorganism kills fish in the millions and has the capacity to kill other animals and man--will anger and sadden you.
August 10, 2011
Wow! I had a hard time putting this book down. I bought and read it just before the media released a raft of information on pfiesteria piscida in the late 1990s. It follows the work of Dr. Joann Burkholder in North Carolina as she deals with the health impacts of exposure to the toxin on not only aquatic life but also human life and her struggles with the bureaucracy.
March 24, 2020
The back sounded interesting. The front made it look interesting. The good reviews did too. But this book wasn’t for me as it put me to sleep. I tried skipping pages and still bored me to tears. If you like science you would like this book.
March 27, 2008
for all the marine/science oriented geeks out there, like myself
September 29, 2010
read it in high school, but it's still one of the better books i've ever read. cool plot! great science mystery/action thriller!
October 28, 2021
“And the Waters Turned to Blood” by Rodney Barker is the story of a microorganism along the Eastern seaboard. It tells the story of Dr. JoAnn Burkholder and her colleagues and their effort to try and stop the disease. One thing that I found interesting is that Dr. JoAnn Burkholder isn't taken seriously because of her young age. This isn’t an uncommon thing, she just learned to put it behind her and continue on her work. Even though this wasn’t a book of my genre preference, I generally enjoyed it. I would recommend this book to anyone needing a scientific read.
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August 15, 2021If you live near the eastern seaboard,love the ocean and coastal waters.If you care about the seafood you are eating and the water activities you enjoy,you may want to read this book.If you are interested in crabbing ,clamming ,fishing in coastal waters you may want to know what happened after this book came out.I am not a biologist or great at science,so reading this book took me a while.Now I have many questions? hope you enjoy this book.Thank You Rodney Barker..
July 3, 2019
This book actually makes me afraid to swim anywhere and living on the Gulf Coast that's frightening. I was fascinated from beginning to end.
September 15, 2021
Probably the best nonfiction book I've ever come across. A true story with lots of scientific detail but somehow it still reads like the best of novels. It's been years since I finished it yet I still remember it clearly and fondly to this day. Highly recommend.
January 2, 2022
Sciency fun
January 6, 2023
Reads like fiction
December 26, 2013
This book presents the struggle of a scientist to study and raise awareness about a harmful microorganism in North Carolina rivers. It centers on how protagonist JoAnn Burkholder clashes with state health and environmental authorities, whom she feels are dragging their feet (at best) to document the impacts of this organism or (at worst) plotting to minimize public awareness of it and undermine her own credibility.
The events are presented dramatically - superficially it gives me an Erin Brockovich vibe. I say "superficially" because I've only seen the movie about Brokovich once, and she wasn't a scientist... and there are probably infinite other divergences. The reason I compare them at all is because the book presents Burkholder as a David to the state authorities' Goliath, speaking up on behalf of fishermen and other residents who may be hurt by this organism.
It's never a boring read - that's for sure. The organism that Burkholder and her colleagues document, Pfiesteria piscicida, kills fish and seems to attack humans too - it may be the cause of Alzheimer's-like neurological disorders, sores and other health effects on people exposed to the rivers where it lives.
The author points fingers at particular members of North Carolina's Department of Environment, Health and Natural Resources, along with the agency SeaGrant (which controls a significant amount of funding for studying Pfiesteria), making a case that they often downplay Burkholder's concerns about the organism, allocate funding to others even though she's the expert on Pfiesteria, and otherwise obfusticate the issue to look like they're doing their jobs but avoid the wrath of industries that pollute the river and may be contributing to the Pfiesteria problem.
The author turns up some strong evidence that there's at least incompetence on the part of these organizations, but at the same time, he also gives a lot of air time to Burkholder's own suspicions about them. He does try to distinguish hard evidence from suspicions, but it's clear that he is looking at this issue from Burkholder's perspective and, I think, not putting her under the harsher lens he uses with the authorities.
I am mostly curious how the author got records of the many conversations that took place in the book. He quotes extensively, and clearly does a ton of interviews, but I can't imagine he could've been present for ALL that was verbally stated... so it would be interesting in and of itself to know about his reporting process.
The events are presented dramatically - superficially it gives me an Erin Brockovich vibe. I say "superficially" because I've only seen the movie about Brokovich once, and she wasn't a scientist... and there are probably infinite other divergences. The reason I compare them at all is because the book presents Burkholder as a David to the state authorities' Goliath, speaking up on behalf of fishermen and other residents who may be hurt by this organism.
It's never a boring read - that's for sure. The organism that Burkholder and her colleagues document, Pfiesteria piscicida, kills fish and seems to attack humans too - it may be the cause of Alzheimer's-like neurological disorders, sores and other health effects on people exposed to the rivers where it lives.
The author points fingers at particular members of North Carolina's Department of Environment, Health and Natural Resources, along with the agency SeaGrant (which controls a significant amount of funding for studying Pfiesteria), making a case that they often downplay Burkholder's concerns about the organism, allocate funding to others even though she's the expert on Pfiesteria, and otherwise obfusticate the issue to look like they're doing their jobs but avoid the wrath of industries that pollute the river and may be contributing to the Pfiesteria problem.
The author turns up some strong evidence that there's at least incompetence on the part of these organizations, but at the same time, he also gives a lot of air time to Burkholder's own suspicions about them. He does try to distinguish hard evidence from suspicions, but it's clear that he is looking at this issue from Burkholder's perspective and, I think, not putting her under the harsher lens he uses with the authorities.
I am mostly curious how the author got records of the many conversations that took place in the book. He quotes extensively, and clearly does a ton of interviews, but I can't imagine he could've been present for ALL that was verbally stated... so it would be interesting in and of itself to know about his reporting process.
February 18, 2010
I needed something to clear my palette after a bunch of old French guys, so I picked this up at a thrift store... It's an interesting analysis of the discovery of the pfiesteria piscida, a microscopic entity which evolved in the polluted rivers of North Carolina and Virginia.
Being a Virginia resident, there were parts of this book that hit home. It was chilling about the Alzheimers-like conditions that resulted from human contact with the microbe and accounts of the acres-wide fields of feces in factory farms which leaked into rivers and spawned the thing to begin with.
But beyond that, this was a combination of overblown alarmism and mystery-novel pacing better suited to an episode of CSI. All the apocalyptic language of the cover, from the title to the back cover quote comparing the microbe to Ebola, blows the whole thing way out of proportion. While it was obviously a serious issue it didn't remotely approach the sort of impending doom scenario the book proffers. I probably could've taken it with a larger grain of salt had I noticed that it was first published twelve years ago.
Being a Virginia resident, there were parts of this book that hit home. It was chilling about the Alzheimers-like conditions that resulted from human contact with the microbe and accounts of the acres-wide fields of feces in factory farms which leaked into rivers and spawned the thing to begin with.
But beyond that, this was a combination of overblown alarmism and mystery-novel pacing better suited to an episode of CSI. All the apocalyptic language of the cover, from the title to the back cover quote comparing the microbe to Ebola, blows the whole thing way out of proportion. While it was obviously a serious issue it didn't remotely approach the sort of impending doom scenario the book proffers. I probably could've taken it with a larger grain of salt had I noticed that it was first published twelve years ago.
July 25, 2016
I mean, this was pretty interesting, and the audiobook was fairly short, just over three hours long, so I'm gonna guess it's less than 100 pages. And yet, it still felt like there was a lot of filler in there for being so brief. It was presented pretty well, up until the end, where it felt like it just... stopped? The fact that it ended totally took me by surprise; it didn't really have any resolution or conclusion, or even a sense of "to be continued." There was a brief epilogue which didn't really add anything, and then... poof, over.
The problems in this book - from the dinoflagellat itself to the associated pollution and damaged livelihoods and health of all of the people involved - are real, and very serious problems. But this probably could have been presented a little better. Spent a little too much time trying to feel like a story and not enough time just saying it like it is.
The problems in this book - from the dinoflagellat itself to the associated pollution and damaged livelihoods and health of all of the people involved - are real, and very serious problems. But this probably could have been presented a little better. Spent a little too much time trying to feel like a story and not enough time just saying it like it is.
February 24, 2010
Yet another science book that deals as much with the politics of navigating academia as with the subject at hand. No funding, people stealing her research etc. What made this book a bit more awesome was the fact that her nemesis ended up going crazy from the toxin of the organisms they were studying. Reading about how easily knowledge of serious disease causing elements can be ignored was seriously scary. As you can imagine from the title, this book has a sensationalist tendency. I've also heard that much of her research has been deemed refuted by those who know. But the
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 25, 2012
A true account of a microorganism that is linked to major fish kills. Pfiesteria piscicida, "the cell from hell", is also responsible for severe debilitating effects on humans. Dr. JoAnn Burkholder and others face countless political obstacles to get people to take the threat seriously.
The book bogs down at times, but overall, is easy to read and understand.
I probably shouldn't have read this right before a fishing trip. It's like watching "Jaws" just before your head to Florida's beaches. Bad idea.
The book bogs down at times, but overall, is easy to read and understand.
I probably shouldn't have read this right before a fishing trip. It's like watching "Jaws" just before your head to Florida's beaches. Bad idea.
March 17, 2013
This is one of those "boring but important" stories about public health concerns and the various events that can place people at greater risk. The story focused more on the researcher's struggles with being taken seriously and her constant barriers with bureaucracy of government and colleagues. While people worry about nuclear proliferation and bioterrorism, this story reminds the reader that human interaction with the environment and the self-serving interests of people in general could possibly be our biggest undoing.
December 19, 2015
And the Waters Turned to Blood by Rodney Barker (Simon & Shuster 1998) (615.9). In 1995, there was a terrible and deadly outbreak of a deadly aquatic organism in the waters of coastal North Carolina which extended up into the waters of Virginia's Chesapeake Bay. Known as "the Red Tide," "pfiesteria piscicida" which scientists call "the cell from hell" was found to be responsible for the outbreak. This is a report of the investigation. My rating: 6.5/10, finished 2001.
January 3, 2013
I had a hard time putting this book down. I was all at once enthralled in the ecology of the protist, the research process, the potential bureaucracy of the RFP process, total government failure and the complete disrespect given to Dr. Burkholder. I only wish there was a bit more on the ecology. I also need to follow up to see where this terrifying (on so many different levels) situation stands. Highly recommend this book.
March 14, 2013
Bought this book randomly and loved it. Starts off almost as a horror movie as they discover this little bugger, then develops into a woman's environmental crusade, ending with a look into the closed door politics of science funding and the evil of your typical environmental department bureaucracy. But the ending is happy and I recommend to anyone interested in biology, environment and women's struggles.
February 13, 2013
As a person interested in the environment and what is happening to it and in it (whether good or bad), this book was a very interesting read. Although I do suspect there was a good bit of exaggeration, I think that the point of human impact on the environment was still driven home. I would recommend the book to people who know quite a bit about science already so that it doesn't scare you too much.
November 16, 2007
reading this was like watching a badly written movie. but if you want to geek out and read about some scary dinoflagellates, read the bioscience article about pfiesteria piscicida by joann burkholder.
February 23, 2010
Thought I would check this out however, I found it somewhat boring and it dragged on. I really thought there would be an end to the studies with the "dino", but there was not. It was too focused on the government.
April 8, 2008
This book was AWSOME. It is based on a true story that even today still has an affect on the world. It is a very riveting book. I would suggest it to anybody that wants a good book to read.
March 12, 2009
Definitely one of my favorites! As a former researcher, this book opened my eyes to the political side of science.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews