On Immunity: An Inoculation

In this study, National Book Critics Circle Award–winner Eula Biss goes on a journey to learn everything she can about vaccinations: where they came from, why we (sometimes irrationally) fear them, and whether they cause some medical problems while preventing others. It’s a journey through science, history, literature, and autobiography, as Biss puts her personal story as a mother on the front lines of a social war between the “vax” and “antivax” camps. Throughout, narrator Marston brings stability to Biss’s sometimes abrupt twists and turns, the measured tones of the audio production offering an unobtrusive point of entry into the author’s complex historical imagination. Whether the book is explaining the germ theory of disease, unpacking the etymology of the word vaccine, or assessing the polarizing legacy of Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring, Marston keeps pace and provides a solid foundation with her quiet, almost Siri-like voice. A Graywolf hardcover. (Sept.)