A New York Times Best Seller A National Book Critics Circle Award Finalist A New York Times Book Review Top 10 Book of the Year A Facebook "Year of Books" Selection One of the Best Books of the Year * National Book Critics Circle Award finalist * The New York Times Book Review (Top 10) * Entertainment Weekly (Top 10) * New York Magazine (Top 10)* Chicago Tribune (Top 10) * Publishers Weekly (Top 10) * Time Out New York (Top 10) * Los Angeles Times * Kirkus * Booklist * NPR's Science Friday * Newsday * Slate * Refinery 29 * And many more... Why do we fear vaccines? A provocative examination by Eula Biss, the author of Notes from No Man's Land, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award Upon becoming a new mother, Eula Biss addresses a chronic condition of fear-fear of the government, the medical establishment, and what is in your child's air, food, mattress, medicine, and vaccines. She finds that you cannot immunize your child, or yourself, from the world. In this bold, fascinating book, Biss investigates the metaphors and myths surrounding our conception of immunity and its implications for the individual and the social body. As she hears more and more fears about vaccines, Biss researches what they mean for her own child, her immediate community, America, and the world, both historically and in the present moment. She extends a conversation with other mothers to meditations on Voltaire's Candide, Bram Stoker's Dracula, Rachel Carson's Silent Spring, Susan Sontag's AIDS and Its Metaphors, and beyond. On Immunity is a moving account of how we are all interconnected-our bodies and our fates.

"A timely, fair-minded and crisply written account."—New York Times Book Review Vaccine juxtaposes the stories of brilliant scientists with the industry's struggle to produce safe, effective, and profitable vaccines. It focuses on the role of military and medical authority in the introduction of vaccines and looks at why some parents have resisted this authority. Political and social intrigue have often accompanied vaccination—from the divisive introduction of smallpox inoculation in colonial Boston to the 9,000 lawsuits recently filed by parents convinced that vaccines caused their children's autism. With narrative grace and investigative journalism, Arthur Allen reveals a history illuminated by hope and shrouded by controversy, and he sheds new light on changing notions of health, risk, and the common good.

This authoritative and unbiased narrative—supported by 50 primary source documents—follows the history of vaccination, highlighting essential medical achievements and ongoing controversies. This timely work provides a comprehensive overview of the scientific breakthrough known as vaccination and the controversy surrounding its opposition. A timeline of discoveries trace the medical and societal progression of vaccines from the early development of this medical preventive to the eradication of epidemics and the present-day discussion about its role in autism. The content presents compelling parallels across different time periods to reflect the ongoing concerns that have persisted throughout history regarding vaccination. Author Lisa Rosner provides a sweeping overview of the topic, covering the development of modern vaccines and practices, laws governing the distribution of vaccines, patients' rights, consumer advocacy, and vaccination disasters. Throughout the volume, primary source documents present the perspectives of researchers, public health specialists, physicians, patients, consumer advocates, and government officials, helping to illuminate the past, present, and future of vaccines on a global level.

Many people sincerely believe that all vaccines are safe, adverse reactions are rare, and no peer-reviewed scientific studies exist showing that vaccines can cause harm. This book -- Miller's Review of Critical Vaccine Studies -- provides the other side of the story that is not commonly told. It contains summaries of 400 important scientific papers to help parents and researchers enhance their understanding of vaccinations. "This book should be required reading for every doctor, medical student and parent. Reading this book will allow you to make better choices when considering vaccination." -- David Brownstein, MD "This book is so precise and exciting in addressing the vaccine controversy that I read it in one evening. I recommend this book to any parent who has questions about vaccines and wants to be factually educated to make informed decisions." -- Gabriel Cousens, MD "Neil Miller's book is a tour de force and a clarion voice championing the cautionary principle: 'When in doubt, minimize risk.' Let's talk science. Read this book. The truth will keep you and your children protected."-- Bradford S. Weeks, MD "Nowhere else can one find such an organized and concise compilation of research on vaccines. Not only does Miller have a deep understanding of science and the issues at hand, he has made this book easy to reference and cite. Truly, there is no other guide out there quite like it. For everyone who contacts me in the future seeking scientific evidence about vaccines, I will recommend Miller's Review of Critical Vaccine Studies." -- Toni Bark, MD, MHEM, LEED AP, previous Director of the pediatric ER at Michael Reese Hospital "Miller's Review of Critical Vaccine Studies is the most comprehensive and coherent accumulation of peer-reviewed research on vaccine issues and natural immunity I have ever come across. A must read for parents, teachers, doctors and other healthcare providers." -- Dr. Tyson Perez, pediatric chiropractor

This eighth and final report of the Immunization Safety Review Committee examines the hypothesis that vaccines, specifically the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine and thimerosal-containing vaccines, are causally associated with autism. The committee reviewed the extant published and unpublished epidemiological studies regarding causality and studies of potential biologic mechanisms by which these immunizations might cause autism. Immunization Safety Review: Vaccines and Autism finds that the body of epidemiological evidence favors rejection of a causal relationship between thimerosal-containing vaccines and autism. The book further finds that potential biological mechanisms for vaccine-induced autism that have been generated to date are only theoretical. It recommends a public health response that fully supports an array of vaccine safety activities and recommends that available funding for autism research be channeled to the most promising areas. The book makes additional recommendations regarding surveillance and epidemiological research, clinical studies, and communication related to these vaccine safety concerns.

A powerful story of how our nation’s leaders overcame the odds, saving the American people from the throes of a deadly pandemic. The prior record for vaccine development and distribution was approximately 4.5 years. Operation Warp Speed got the COVID-19 vaccine to the American people in less than 10 months. Operation Warp Speed did not happen by accident. It was the result of exceptional leadership, explicit strategy, and unprecedented teamwork. Author Paul Mango, the foremost leader of Operation Warp Speed and the former deputy chief of US Health and Human Services, chronicles the challenges and real dangers of developing the vaccine. From the beginning, two lead scientists, Dr. Moncef Slaoui and Dr. Debra Birx, fought head to head on which vaccines had the greatest probability of success. Tensions grew as the Army Materiel Command and the Center for Disease Control debated on whether public health agencies or the private sector would take over vaccine distribution. Mango details the largest hurdle for the Operation Warp Speed team: though Pfizer, the first distribution company to deliver the mRNA vaccine, sought aid from the Federal Government, they refused the government’s request to oversee safe manufacturing of the vaccine, eventually leading to a major scandal as Pfizer missed its contractual obligation to deliver 40 million doses by the end of 2020, the number of positive cases reaching a frightening peak all the while. In this harrowing, behind-the-scenes account of the most successful public-private partnership since World War II, we learn how the nation’s biggest leaders accomplished the impossible. Through sheer will and exceptional commitment, a small group of leaders fulfilled its mission, making the United States the only country in the world which could offer a vaccine to any citizen by April 2021, scarcely 14 months after the genetic identification of the virus.

A “clear and insightful” takedown of the anti-vaccination movement, from its 19th-century antecedents to modern-day Facebook activists—with strategies for refuting false claims of friends and family (Financial Times) Vaccines are a documented success story, one of the most successful public health interventions in history. Yet there is a vocal anti-vaccination movement, featuring celebrity activists (including Kennedy scion Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and actress Jenny McCarthy) and the propagation of anti-vax claims through books, documentaries, and social media. In Anti-Vaxxers, Jonathan Berman explores the phenomenon of the anti-vaccination movement, recounting its history from its nineteenth-century antecedents to today’s activism, examining its claims, and suggesting a strategy for countering them. After providing background information on vaccines and how they work, Berman describes resistance to Britain’s Vaccination Act of 1853, showing that the arguments anticipate those made by today’s anti-vaxxers. He discusses the development of new vaccines in the twentieth century, including those protecting against polio and MMR (measles, mumps, rubella), and the debunked paper that linked the MMR vaccine to autism; the CDC conspiracy theory promoted in the documentary Vaxxed; recommendations for an alternative vaccination schedule; Kennedy’s misinformed campaign against thimerosal; and the much-abused religious exemption to vaccination. Anti-vaxxers have changed their minds, but rarely because someone has given them a list of facts. Berman argues that anti-vaccination activism is tied closely to how people see themselves as parents and community members. Effective pro-vaccination efforts should emphasize these cultural aspects rather than battling social media posts.