Rabid

A Cultural History of the World’s Most Diabolical Virus

By: Bill Wasik, Monica Murphy

Narrated by: Johnny Heller

Length: 8 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's summary

A maddened creature, frothing at the mouth, lunges at an innocent victim—and with a bite, transforms its prey into another raving monster. It’s a scenario that underlies our darkest tales of supernatural horror, but its power derives from a very real virus, a deadly scourge known to mankind from our earliest days. In this fascinating exploration, journalist Bill Wasik and veterinarian Monica Murphy chart four thousand years in the history, science, and cultural mythology of rabies.

The most fatal virus known to science, rabies kills nearly 100 percent of its victims once the infection takes root in the brain. A disease that spreads avidly from animals to humans, rabies has served as a symbol of savage madness and inhuman possession throughout history. Today, its history can help shed light on the wave of emerging diseases—from AIDS to SARS to avian flu—with origins in animal populations.

From Greek myths to zombie flicks, from the laboratory heroics of Louis Pasteur to the contemporary search for a lifesaving treatment, Rabid is a fresh, fascinating, and often wildly entertaining look at one of mankind’s oldest and most fearsome foes.

Bill Wasik is a senior editor at Wired magazine and was previously a senior editor at Harper’s, where he wrote on culture, media, and politics. He is the editor of the anthology Submersion Journalism and has also written for Oxford American, Slate, Salon, and McSweeney’s.

©2012 Bill Wasik and Monica Murphy (P)2012 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"[An] ambitious and smart history of the virus…. The authors track how science tried to tame the scourge, with its ravaging neurological effects. Yet the rare tales of modern survivors only underscore that, despite the existence of treatment through a series of injections, we're at a stalemate in conquering rabies." ( Publishers Weekly)

"[Wasik and Murphy] place the world's deadliest virus in its historical and cultural context with a scientifically sound and compelling history that begins in ancient Mesopotamia and ends in twenty-first-century Bali…Readable, fascinating, informative, and occasionally gruesome, this is highly recommended for anyone interested in medical history or the cultural history of disease." ( Library Journal)

Excellent history, but not for the faint of heart

I learned a tremendous amount from this book. The reality of rabies is more horrifying than any novel. And I appreciate the courage of scientists such as Pasteur who truly risked their lives to find a treatment, a cure, or a preventative for rabies.

um, now I'm scared.

I think a bat flew into my room the other night while I was sleeping and bit me. This book is disturbing my dreams. Read at your own risk!

No, really, the book is good and very interesting, though I might recommend you take breaks from this book to read about rainbows and sunshine and cute babies. It is dark and sometimes ghastly. (Which you could probably figure out based on the title and topic.)

The book was well written and researched. The topic is unavoidably intriguing and the history well-handled. I liked the organization of the book and I appreciate that the author included a few (relatively) uplifting pieces of information about more recent advances in treatment, like the Milwaukee protocol. I asked my husband to remember the Milwaukee protocol in case my dream about the bat flying in my room was actually true.

This book has a good combination of history, science and folklore--or, more precisely, how folklore was affected (or might have been) by real incidents of rabies.

I recommend the book to folks who are interested. I give 5 stars for the performance and book, but demote an overall star because the book isn't exactly pleasant. I wouldn't recommend it to just anyone.

great content!

every chapter carefully creater to keep your interest, and no added fluff. I'll never forget the name Pastor.

Great but somewhat tangential

I love the narrative aspect and the different historical points the book goes over. I also really enjoyed the medical history aspect that goes into it and anecdotal experiences. This is a good book if you want a braid range history of rabies and like medical history. My only complaint is that in some chapters it can be hard to follow and the narrator audio changes a lot.

Relevant to today's Pandemic

great story about how science can overcome disease. we can learn so much more about about our world and the challenges in it.

great book!

it's amazing how far we've gotten in knowing rabies but how little we still know about it...

Frightening yet balanced with truth perspective

I read this book during the COVID 19 pandemic. What an interesting time to reflect on the folklore and science that accompanied beliefs and treatment of Rabbies! I highly recommend this book to anyone with a love for science & medicine.

Hmmmmm

Started slow but got really intriguing as it went on. I would definitely read this again. It was interesting on how the doctors tried to combat rabies and how other diseases so called came about, such as aids from a monkey because someone injected monkey blood for to achieve sexual prowess.

Interesting, but not the most focused book

This book contains a wealth of information, probably more than anyone could ever wish to know on the subject of rabies. The chapter focusing on the work of Louis Pasteur was particularly engaging. However, many of the connections that the authors attempt to draw between rabies and other aspects of life and culture seem tangential at best. While it’s cool that zombies and vampires were likely influenced by rabies, I doubt that a whole chapter on the subject was required.

On the whole: the book was decent, but you could probably skip a few of the chapters without suffering any great loss.

Very eye opening!

Very eye opening, need to get the bat out of my basement! Great book indeed