History & Commentary

The Great Plague is one of the most compelling events in human history—even more so now, when the notion of plague has never loomed larger as a contemporary public concern....

Dr. Lange graduated from medical school in 1981, right as a new plague swept across the globe. His story became intertwined with the story of HIV. At once a physician, scientist, AIDS activist, and medical diplomat, Lange studied ways to battle HIV and prevent its spread....

A fascinating account of the world’s most famous disease - polio - told as you have never heard it before. Epidemics of paralysis began to rage in the early 1900s, seemingly out of nowhere....

ShadowMan is the pulse-pounding account of the first time in history that the FBI’s Behavioral Science Unit created a psychological profile to catch a serial killer....

David Oshinsky chronicles the history of America's oldest hospital and in so doing also charts the rise of New York to the nation's preeminent city, the path of American medicine....

Since early 2020, the world has experienced a series of catastrophic events - a global pandemic caused by a so-called novel coronavirus; international lockdowns and border closings causing widespread business closures, economic collapse, and massive unemployment....

Upon its first publication 20 years ago, And The Band Played On was quickly recognized as a masterpiece of investigatve reporting....

The Structure of Scientific Revolutions is essential listening for understanding the history, philosophy, and evolution of science....

An oddly compelling, often hilarious exploration of the strange lives of our bodies postmortem....

Grief Works is a compassionate guide that will inform and engage anyone who is grieving and provide clear advice for those seeking to comfort the bereaved....

In this eyewitness story of how the anti-vaccine movement grew into a dangerous and prominent anti-science element in American politics, Dr. Peter J. Hotez describes the devastating impacts it has had on Americans’ health and lives....

Award-winning New York Times reporter Donald G. McNeil, Jr. reflects on twenty-five years of covering pandemics—how governments react to them, how the media covers them, how they are exploited, and what we can do to prepare for the next one....

With poignant insight and humor, Frank Vertosick, Jr., MD, describes some of the greatest challenges of his career, including a six-week-old infant with a tumor in her brain and more....

Beginning with opium, the “joy plant,” which has been used for 10,000 years, Thomas Hager tells a captivating story of medicine. His subjects include the largely forgotten female pioneer who introduced smallpox inoculation to Britain, the infamous knockout drops, and much more....

Almost daily, headlines announce newly discovered links between cancers and their genetic causes. Science journalist Jessica Wapner vividly relates the backstory behind those headlines....

Author Cory Franklin, MD, who headed the hospital's intensive care unit from the 1970s through the 1990s, shares his most unique and bizarre experiences....

The extraordinary story of the Nazi-era scientific genius who discovered how cancer cells eat - and what it means for how we should....

The harrowing, dramatic and profoundly moving story of the Australian and New Zealand nurses who served in the Great War....

A journalist takes listeners into the science and history of intermittent fasting, an ancient practice in the middle of a red-hot resurgence, exploring the body's power to heal itself....

This book concentrates on the medical downfall of the Tudors, examining their gynecological history and medical records....

This audiobook gives a dramatic account of the Antonine plague, the mysterious disease that struck the Roman Empire at its pinnacle....

For 4,000 years, the size and vitality of cities, economies, and empires were heavily determined by infection. Striking humanity in waves, the cycle of plagues set the tempo of civilizational growth and decline, since common response to the threat was exclusion....

As a psychiatrist in training fresh from medical school, Carl Erik Fisher found himself face-to-face with an addiction crisis that nearly cost him everything.

This collection of impassioned essays, published between 1973 and 2006, chronicles the author's long campaign against the orthodoxies of psychiatry....

Acclaimed historian Mark Jackson takes a fresh global view of mankind’s great battle to stave off death and disease, exploring both Western and Eastern traditions....

Pain is the number one reason people schedule medical appointments. Yet many people do not receive adequate relief, especially for chronic pain. Pain: The Culture and Science of Pain describes the multiple factors that contribute to the ongoing problem of unrelieved pain. There are both cultural and scientific reasons. The book discusses how various cultures and religions throughout history have downplayed the importance of relieving pain. Such biases persist today.

The Aging Revolution is the story of Butler and his disciples: women and men who saw older distressed adults in hospitals and homes, and worse: being ignored by most of the medical establishment. These revolutionaries could not ignore the suffering, and they set out—individually and collectively—to create entirely new ways of caring for aging adults to ease their suffering and improve their quality and length of life.

Whether you're a seasoned herbalist or just starting your journey, Herbalism—Powerful Lost Remedies is your ultimate guide to harnessing the power of nature for your health and well-being. Explore the rich history of herbalism, from ancient Egyptian and Chinese practices to Native American remedies, and learn how these traditions continue to benefit us today. With step-by-step guides, you'll not only learn how to identify, grow, and harvest your own medicinal herbs but also how to create potent remedies right at home.

In this unique history, you will discover how ill health has been with us for as long as humans have existed, as has the drive to treat and understand it. Over the course of centuries, the ways in which doctors have engaged with sickness has changed drastically, and so too have the tools at their disposal.

This book offers a detailed exploration of the Black Plague's journey through medieval Europe, Asia, and Africa. While it details the human suffering and societal breakdowns caused by the pandemic, it also highlights the remarkable resilience of the survivors. The book examines how the plague sparked innovation in public health, inspired artistic and literary masterpieces, and transformed social structures, ultimately leading to the cultural rebirth of the Renaissance.