Fevers, Feuds, and Diamonds - 03/10/21

 Hello Healthy Humans, 

Book 12: Fevers, Feuds, And Diamonds: Ebola and the Ravages of History (6.5/10)

Premise: An on the ground account of fighting the Ebola epidemic of 2014, and a history of Sierra Leone, Guinea, and Liberia. 

Paul Farmer has spent more than 30 years working to combat viral outbreaks and help in medical oasis's. In the first half of the book Farmer gives his first hand account of the ravages of Ebola, it's affects on individuals he treated, and many people he met along the way. Farmer like other boot on the ground doctors see's the ravages of Ebola, along with a slew doctors, nurses, and medical professionals catch and die from Ebola simply because of lack of proper equipment to safely treat the patients. Spending most of his time in-between Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia. This section falls heavily under Fevers

This book reminded me a lot of the reverse of The Idealist By Nina Munk, who was also working in Africa around the same time. In the Idealist Jeffery Sachs's pours money into African villages in an attempt to make them self supporting, sometimes on the ground, but usually at universities and in board rooms across the globe. Farmer spends much of his time actually on the ground with little to no resources. Both fighting for the same cause, to help an underdeveloped Africa. 

In the second part Feuds and Diamonds come into play as Farmer gives a quick but very dense history of the three countries mentioned above. From around the time Europeans, and later Americans, colonized, exploited, and enslaved much of the population through the 2014 outbreak of Ebola. There is much discussion about whether and how much the European and American colonization and influence helped vs hurt the growth of these countries. A heavy emphasis is put on Fire Stones large latex farm, Africans being treated as 'less than', compared to their white conquerors, and the hand foreigners played in blood diamonds, coups, and more. 

For the last, and smallest section of the book Farmer goes back to talking about Ebola and why the world needs to watch out for such deadly diseases, mainly by helping Africa have safe and affordable health care. Besides the financial hurdle, we must also consider training people, and a way to get citizens of these countries to once again trust health care, which has so often let them down before. 

Farmer was a protégé of Dr. Fauci, and often called him Tony in the book after introducing him in some depth. Since the book was completed mere months before the Corona Virus Pandemic struck the world, Farmer was very quick to write an epilogue written shortly after the pandemic went international and the world started shutting down. 

In all honesty one of the reasons this book has a lower rating than many others is because it felt like two books smashed together. Both the first and third parts could have been a complete book, another book could have been made out of the second part. Together the transitions felt somewhat jarring, and neither subject was as flushed out as it could have easily been. While I understand the importance and appreciate his research into these African Countries history and culture, it seems as though it should have been either one or two chapters or a separate book altogether. At over 600 pages this book was quite a hefty read (or in my case over 20 hours of listening). 

So put on your mask, stay six feet apart, and be glad you have access to medical care. 

and remember dear readers, Stay Vivid.