Author:Meredith Wadman
**SHORTLISTED FOR THE WELLCOME BOOK PRIZE**
**A GUARDIAN SCIENCE BOOK OF THE YEAR**
‘Riveting … invites comparison to Rebecca Skloot's The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks’
Nature
The epic and controversial story of a major breakthrough in cell biology that led to the conquest of rubella and other devastating diseases.
Until the late 1960s, tens of thousands of children suffered crippling birth defects if their mothers had been exposed to rubella, popularly known as German measles, while pregnant. There was no vaccine and little understanding of how the disease devastated foetuses. In June 1962, a young biologist in Philadelphia produced the first safe, clean cells that made possible the mass-production of vaccines against many common childhood diseases. Two years later, in the midst of a German measles epidemic, his colleague developed the vaccine that would one day effectively wipe out rubella for good.
This vaccine - and others made with those cells - have since protected hundreds of millions of people worldwide, the vast majority of them preschool children. Meredith Wadman’s account of this great leap forward in medicine is a fascinating and revelatory read.
It is a thriller - a beautifully researched and paced thriller - and is destined to be a classic piece of science writing in its navigation of the nexus of personality, research and ethics.
—— Edmund de Waal, author of The Hare with the Amber EyesAn extraordinary story and Wadman is to be congratulated, not just for uncovering it but for relaying it in such a pacy, stimulating manner. This is a first-class piece of science writing'
—— Robin McKie , ObserverExtraordinary...The Vaccine Race is a tremendous feat of research and synthesis, its lucid technical explanations combined with forays into the business politics of big pharma, and portraits of the scientists whose work has saved untold lives.
—— Steven Poole , Daily TelegraphMarvellous…fascinating…Wadman doesn’t shy away from some very difficult and unpleasant truths…The Vaccine Race bears comparison with Richard Rhodes’s Pulitzer Prize-winning The Making of the Atomic Bomb. I can pay no higher compliment to Meredith Wadman and her fine book
—— Manjit Kumar , The Literary ReviewWadman's brilliantly researched book unfolds like a thriller, but asks some tough ethical questions along the way.
—— Sophie Ratcliffe, Associate Professor of English Literature, Oxford UniversityA riveting tale of scientific infighting, clashing personalities, sketchy ethics and the transformation of cell biology from a sleepy scientific backwater to a high-stakes arena where vast fortunes are made.
—— Wall Street JournalRiveting... invites comparison to Rebecca Skloot's 2007 The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks... Wadman stands back from the sources and material to guide the reader through a narrative that is no less captivating.
—— NatureEpically readable - superb
—— Chris van TullekenMeticulously researched... a success story for grown-ups... plenty of ammunition for those arguing with family or Facebook friends who have swallowed the conspiracy theories of the anti-vaccination community
—— Sheena Cruickshank , New ScientistSuperb ... It is a tale – told with pace and authority – of theft, evasion, deceit and obdurate overregulation
—— Robin McKie , Observer, Books of the YearMeticulously researched and carefully crafted . . . The Vaccine Race, is an enlightening telling of the development of vaccines in the mid-20th century. . . . an intelligent and entertaining tome . . . [and] a comprehensive portrait of the many issues faced in the race to develop vaccines.
—— ScienceExplains complex science in methodical detail.
—— Mail on SundayExcellent... an important story, well told
—— The ScotsmanThe Vaccine Race is an important read—for scientists, politicians, physicians, parents and everyone interested in how the world of medical research works... it is so important to read this book, to see how science works and how politics can and does interfere with what science does best and what is best for us.
—— Huffington PostAn exemplary piece of medical journalism, and Wadman makes strikingly clear the human costs of medical developments as well as the roles of politics and economics.
—— Publishers WeeklyWadman does a superb job of making the technical comprehensible to the lay reader and, more importantly, makes the science come to life by honing in on the brilliant men and women who were driven to create new, life-saving vaccines... While the science is fascinating, the foibles of the main characters are what keep the reader gripped
—— Globe and MailThis is a story about the war against disease - a war without end - and the development of enormously important vaccines, but in telling that story, in showing how science works, Meredith Wadman reveals much more. Like all wars, that story includes heroism, risk-taking, persistence and fighting against the odds, and, like all wars, that story also includes politics, obtuseness, bureaucracy, and fights over money. It's very well-written and does not oversimplify yet explains clearly even the purely scientific parts of the story. In short, I loved this book.
—— John M. Barry, New York Times bestselling author of The Great InfluenzaReads like a good detective novel... Wadman’s great strength, in the end, is her uncanny ability to weave the multiple strands of a complicated story into a coherent narrative.
—— David Oshinsky, author of the Pulizer-prize-winning Polio - An American StoryRivalries and shenanigans abound in Wadman’s complex story... An important story well told
—— Kirkus ReviewsWadman tells the inspiring, and sometimes murky, story of the battle to protect the world from viral disease.
—— Daily MailDazzling... There is nothing about Gene that is less than nuanced.
—— Sathnam Sanghera , The TimesA magnificent synthesis of the science of life, and forces all to confront the essence of that science as well as the ethical and philosophical challenges to our conception of what constitutes being human
—— Paul Berg, winner of the Nobel Prize in ChemistryWise and lucid...excellent
—— Andrew Marr , BBC Radio 4 Start the WeekA tourist guide to the new Africa, the human genome… Mukherjee gives an exhaustive account of the development of the modern science of inheritance… Mukherjee does a good job of cutting away the web of ambiguity and complexity’
—— Steve Jones , New StatesmanWritten with the rollicking enthusiasm of sports journalism… Mukherjee has an ear for his subject’s rhetorical brilliance.
—— Andrew Solomon , Guardian WeeklyMeticulous… Carefully constructed, deliberate prose.
—— Sumit Paul-Choudary , Literary ReviewMakes a compelling case that our ability to harness the medical benefits of genomic science while avoiding its hazards promises to be among the defining challenges of the 21st century.
—— Andrew Ward , Financial TimesMukherjee has done readers an admirable service, by turning one of the most important scientific sagas – arguably the most important – in history into a tale that is too good not to know
—— Globe and MailRather wonderful book… All-encompassing and eye-opening and moving and amusing, at times, and endlessly fascinating and truly brilliant… As long as intelligent, empathetic, thoughtful people like himself are to the forefront, it should turn out alright.
—— Darragh McManus , Irish IndependnetAn accessible and beautifully written overview of the complex field of genetics by the Indian-born doctor. It’s compellingly personal and provocative, too.
—— TelegraphMukherjee views his subject panoptically from a great and clarifying height, yet also intimately.
—— James Gleick , Scotland on SundayDr Mukherjee uses personal experience to particularly good effect… He writes tenderly.
—— The Economist[A] Magisterial historical survey.
—— Philip Ball , Chemistry WorldMukherjee has a gift for making gripping, vivid narrative out of the cataclysmic but largely invisible drama of molecular biology.
—— Lev Grossman , Time MagazineCompelling
—— Stuart Ritchie , SpectatorFascinating, complex and accessible.
—— Anna Carey , Irish TimesIntimate, insider’s account of the role that genetics.
—— Nilanjana Roy , Financial TimesA tourist guide to the twenty-first century’s uncharted continent, the human genome... Gives a full and lively account of the development of the subject... He has talked to many of the main players and gives deep insights into their moments of discovery... Mukherjee does a good job of cutting away the web of ambiguity and complexity that scientists have woven.
—— Steve Jones , New StatesmanA daring and highly personal voyage into the future of genetic research
—— VogueThe Gene’s dominant traits are historical breadth, clinical compassion, and Mukherjee’s characteristic graceful style… Mukherjee writes eloquently
—— Nathaniel Comfort , AtlanticA fine read, with many fine stories.
—— David McConnell , Irish Times[It is] accessible and beautifully written… It’s compellingly personal and provocative, too.
—— Daily TelegraphThe Gene is a staggeringly impressive piece of writing… [It] takes us on a fascinating journey through the world of genetics… Written with a clarity that brings the most complex concepts to life… An accessible, gripping and thought-provoking read. In short, this book is a masterpiece and you should read it.
—— Jamie Durrani , Chemistry WorldAn essential read.
—— Mail on SundayInspiring and tremendously evocative
—— San Francisco ChronicleA fascinating read
—— Hugh JackmanYou may think this book is not for you. Thing again… My only caution would be not to recommend it to too many people… So whether you’re a teacher or parent attempting to inspire…or you simply want an erudite anecdote, this book is for you. It’s a dazzling example of scientific story-telling and definitely my book of the year.
—— Cath Murray , School's WeekAn epic 150-year, 500-plus page journey of genetic discovery… [An] excellent and authoritative account.
—— Charalambos Kyriacou , Times Higher EducationThis is a brilliantly readable celebration of the science and scientists who have transformed out understanding of what it means to be human.
—— Nick Rennison , Daily MailThe Gene is a truly impressive achievement… Mukherjee has created a masterwork of the history of the gene and its study. In this popular science book, scientist and non-scientist readers alike will feel they have a true understanding of the history, biology and ethics of genetics.
—— Bio NewsHe deftly lays out a history of the gene… One of the great science books of the decade with an engagingly enthusiastic personality at its heart.
—— Saga Magazine[A]superbly written tale.
—— Stephen Meyler , RTE GuideMukherjee writes with clarity and passion… This should prove a fascinating read for anyone interested in understanding how far the study of the gene has taken us, particularly with respect to medicine, and where the future may lie.
—— Emma McConnell , Pharmaceutical JournalAmbitious and honest, The Gene sheds light on both our past and future.
—— Kitty Knowles , MemoMukherjee’s text brims with potential… Surely The Gene has to be the new bible for a new generation of aspiring biologists, biochemists and, frankly, thinking people? So whether you’re a teacher or parent attempting to inspire a reluctant teen to get excited about science, or you simply want an erudite anecdote, this book is for you. It’s a dazzling example of scientific story-telling, and definitely my book of the year.
—— School's WeekIf you want a good overview of the history of the gene, you can’t go wrong starting here.
—— Paul Cheney , NudgeA provocative and engaging [read].
—— Independent NurseMukherjee’s prose tends to be lavish, but this befits the weighty topic, and his explanatory style is clear yet enveloping… Compelling scientific and medical storytelling… A spectacular effort from an author I hopes has plenty more tales to tell.
—— Euan Ashley , LancetAn essential guide to biology.
—— Gentleman's Journal, Book of the YearA brilliant, chunky, study of genes.
—— William Leith , Evening StandardThis book captures the progression from that intuitive sense of genetics to its birth as a veritable science and, for better or for worse, its evolution into a powerful tool… The book ends not with a conclusion, but with a feeling of anticipation… In many ways, The Gene is a call for caution and for a thoughtful consideration of the possibilities that progress may bring… When genes become tools, what will those tools be used for? As we try to answer that question, Mukherjee’s book asks us to carefully look back before we continue to move forward
—— Claire McDaniel & Daniel Marchalik , British Medical JournalA comprehensive – and gripping – history of the gene
—— Emma Finamore , Memo
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