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Deadly Invaders: Tracking Today's Global Viruses, from Marburg to the Avian Flu
 
 

Deadly Invaders: Tracking Today's Global Viruses, from Marburg to the Avian Flu [Hardcover]


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Through a special collaboration with "The New York Times", Kingfisher Publications is pleased to present a new way to learn about the events and concepts that define our world. Gripping first-person narratives, written by veteran "New York Times" journalists, bring history and current events to life for young readers. Full-colour illustrations, photographs and sidebars explain key concepts, and historical articles from the archives of "The New York Times" place events in the global context. This work is set in Angola, 2005. Science reporter, Denise Grady, is trying on a bio-hazard suit for the first time. She is about to head to a virus hot zone to cover the story of a dangerous new disease caused by the Marburg virus. The virus, closely related to Ebola, is spreading in the African nation - most of its victims die within a week. From this terrifying beginning, Denise explores the realities of emerging viruses - diseases that have gone global in the last 20 years, or that are expected to be a world threat in the years to come. From HIV to Avian Flu, this is a harrowing look at the dangers we face in a global society, and the ways that we can protect ourselves in the future.

About the Author

Denise Grady has been a science reporter for The New York Times since 1998. In that time she has written more than 500 articles about medicine and biology. In 1998, she covered the Hantavirus outbreak in New Mexico, and she recently travelled to Angola to report on an outbreak of Marburg virus there. She lives in Westchester, New York, USA.

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An illness sweeps the globe. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Index | Back Cover
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5.0 out of 5 stars Courtesy of Teens Read Too, Aug 25 2007
This review is from: Deadly Invaders: Tracking Today's Global Viruses, from Marburg to the Avian Flu (Hardcover)
When I received my copy of DEADLY INVADERS, I had every intention of focusing on two of the diseases I was most familiar with--Avian (Bird) Flu and West Nile Disease. I had never actually heard of Marburg Fever, but quickly realized that a large portion of the book was devoted to this disease, and became intrigued.

The Marburg Story is broken down into six sections: Luanda, Angola; The Hot Zone; Arrival in Uige; Claudia's Funeral; The Outbreak Ends, and Animal Origins. So what is Marburg Fever? The Marburg virus is found in Africa, Asia, and South America, and is called a viral hemorrhagic fever. Outbreaks tend to erupt without warning, and although they cause rapidly fatal diseases, the illness starts out with ordinary flu symptoms--headache, fever, aches and pains, an occasional rash, diarrhea and vomiting. What causes Marburg Fever to become deadly, though, is the fact that about half of the victims who suffer from the flu-like symptoms then begin to bleed, both internally and externally. What often follows is a breakdown of vital organs like the heart, kidneys, and liver from the fluid that is leaking out of the blood vessels.

Sounds horrifically painful, doesn't it? It is, and although right now it's only been found in the aforementioned countries and has come to an end, it could arise again, and even be spread to other parts of the globe. One of the most important things I learned by reading DEADLY INVADERS is how easily a virus, whether one that is air-born or one that can only be contracted through direct contact of bodily fluids, can be spread. With the ease of travel from one country to another, and with short incubation periods for viruses with little or no obvious symptoms in the beginning, it is not unlikely that an epidemic of some sort will one day spread across the Earth.

Besides Marburg Fever, there are six other diseases profiled in DEADLY INVADERS: Avian (Bird) Flu, HIV and AIDS, Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome, West Nile Disease, SARS, and Monkeypox. Each virus has specific symptoms, and none have cures. It is up to medical professionals across the world to work together to find vaccines for these diseases, so that we're prepared in the face of eventual outbreaks.

This is definitely an informative book. If you've ever wondered about the likelihood of outbreaks of Bird Flu or West Nile Disease in the United States, or if diseases that thrive in third-world countries will ever be a threat to those in the developed world, you need to read DEADLY INVADERS. The threat is there, and it's up to all of us to get ready.

Reviewed by: Jennifer Wardrip, aka "The Genius"
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