The Ghost Map by Steven Johnson

Each year Portland's Multnomah County Library chooses a book it deems worthy of making an "Everyone Reads" for our city. This year, with the support of OMSI (Oregon Museum of Science & Industry) our library chose The Ghost Map by Steven Johnson. The subtitle of The Ghost Map explains its thesis as "The Story of London's Most Terrifying Epidemic- and How It Changed Science, Cities, and the Modern World." It is indeed a story while at the same time being a non-fiction account of a cholera outbreak in 19th century London. The Washington Post called it a "medical thriller" and a "detective" story which I found a bit misleading. It is not exactly like watching House or CSI, but if you have an interest in public health issues or urban development you will probably find this book very interesting.

When cholera broke out in 19th century London, the city as a modern day phenomenon was still relatively new. Never before had so many people gathered to live in such a small space. It was characteristic 'urbanization' and 'industrialization'- buzz words of high school history classes. With this new concentration of people came new problems in waste management, disease, and resources...some of the same problems our own city planners face today. By looking at one disease outbreak in one 19th century London neighborhood, Johnson leads his readers to ask bigger questions about our own cities and the problems we must face. What makes his book so accessible, and why I think it became Multnomah County's Everybody Reads, is that he does this by focusing his story on two individual characters and the telling of their story. By engaging his readers in specific personalities and leading us in a narrative fashion, Johnson winsomely brings an average reader into the drama of history and public health.

Johnson connects a story from the pages of history to our own modern cities writing,

"And so our conversion to a city-planet is by no means irreversible. The very forces that propelled the urban revolution in the first place-the scale and connectedness of dense urban living- could be turned against us. Rogue viruses or weapons could once again turn urban areas into sites of mass death or terror. But if we are to keep alive the model of sustainable metropolitan life....we must do at the very least two things. The first is to embrace the insights of science...and apply the rational application of the scientific method to public health matters...The second is to commit ourselves to the kinds of public health systems (that developed in 19th c. London) such as clean water, sanitary waste removal and recycling, disease detection and mapping programs"(254-5).

I think Johnson's book is significant, and I would recommend it with the caveat to lower your expectations for a great thriller or mystery. Rather, approach it as a book that will make you think about public health issues and urban responsibility. You can read more about the book and the city's program to get folks reading at Everybody Reads 2010 or Powell's Books.