We’re about a year and half into a pandemic not seen before in our lifetimes. COVID-19 is entirely new and scientists and medical experts must rely on years of experience and collective knowledge to analyze the damage and offer solutions. Dr. John S. Tregoning is one of those professionals. His newly released book, Infectious: Pathogens and How We Fight Them, is a fascinating and well-researched explanation of what makes us sick and what keeps us alive.

Dr. Tregoning starts off with the basics – he assumes that the reader has absolutely no knowledge or familiarity of biology, DNA/RNA, or even what a pathogen is (i.e. virus vs. fungi vs. bacteria etc). Readers can rest assured that they do not have to have ANY background knowledge to digest the information here – Dr. Tregoning has got us covered. 

He continues to unload the facts and gives examples throughout history. He shares both well-known and lesser-known names that have made remarkable contributions to science, from all around the globe. For example, the legacy of Henrietta Lacks and her contribution to the discovery of HeLa cells – the first immortalized human cell line and one of the most important cell lines in medical research. Dr. Tregoning made sure to leave no stone unturned and to give credit where it’s due in Infectious. 

After covering the basics and scientific discoveries over the years, Dr. Tregoning goes into the history of vaccine development. He continues to name-drop and give credit to those appropriate – from historical figures to those within his scientific community. He describes the remarkable advances in epidemiology over the years and more recently with the COVID-19 pandemic, and reiterates that science will continue to be a crucial part of public health and policy. 

Infectious is not a bipartisan standpoint. Dr. Tregoning has 25 years of experience in his field – of course he is biased, and in strong favor of vaccines. Anti-vaxxers and conspiracy theorists will not agree with him (although they of all people should read this book). But he does want to give those who are vaccine-hesitant the benefit of the doubt. And he understands that scientists have no training in public relations, hence the challenge of successfully reaching the public. But he does sprinkle in some humor/dad jokes to make the subject matter as entertaining as one can. I also appreciated the perspective he provided by adding a timeline and case/death count update at the beginning of each chapter. 

My only gripes with this book is that I felt like Dr. Tregoning tried to fit too much knowledge and history into a condensed space. I understand word count limits exist, so that is not necessarily a deal-breaker. He was merely ambitious and succeeded in his task, at the risk of overloading the reader with too much information at once. Overall, I recommend this book to anyone wanting to learn more about pathogens and vaccines from a very credible individual who is not involved in a government body or vaccine production company. 

Dr. John S. Tregoning joins us for a Cantina Conversation on The Nerd Cantina Show podcast to discuss his background, how writing a novel differed from his previous writing experiences in academia/science, and his impressions of the world response to the pandemic. Keep an ear out for the interview and order Infectious: Pathogens and How We Fight Them, available now.