Quarantine Life from Cholera to COVID-19

What Pandemics Teach Us About Parenting, Work, Life, and Communities from the 1700s to Today

By: Kari Nixon

Narrated by: Kris Carr

For readers of Mary Roach and Jared Diamond, an innovative look at the histories of different epidemics and what it meant for society, alongside what lessons different diseases have to teach us as society battles the novel coronavirus.

Throughout history, there have been numerous epidemics that have threatened mankind with destruction. Diseases have the ability to highlight our shared concerns across the ages, affecting every social divide from national boundaries, economic categories, racial divisions, and beyond. Whether looking at smallpox, HIV, Ebola, or COVID-19 outbreaks, we see the same conversations arising as society struggles with the all-encompassing question: What do we do now?

In “poignant yet relevant detail” (Niki Kapsambelis, author of The Inheritance), Quarantine Life from Cholera to COVID-19 demonstrates that these conversations have always involved the same questions of individual liberties versus the common good, debates about rushing new and untested treatments, considerations of whether quarantines are effective to begin with, what to do about healthy carriers, and how to keep trade circulating when society shuts down.

This vibrant social and medical history tracks different diseases and outlines their trajectory, what they meant for society, and societal questions each disease brought up, along with practical takeaways we can apply to current and future pandemics—so we can all be better prepared for whatever life throws our way.

Phenomenal!

An intellectual, informative, and interesting take on a pandemic we all unfortunately still live in. The narrator captures the tone of the book perfectly and feels relatable, comforting, and reliable. Nixon’s writing on such a serious and, for many, a scary topic, brings in just enough wit and humor to keep the subject matter from being too emotionally draining. A definite must read for our time.

Fascinating book and a great narrator!

I went into this expecting more of a bare bones medical timeline and a far more robotic telling, but this was a wonderful, human look at the history of pandemics and how they shape us as a species. I enjoyed this book immensely, and appreciated the honesty of the author. Ms. Carr did a lovely job conveying the emotion of the stories of those who faced these illnesses, and how their choices shaped us now. I hope to hear more readings from her!