A VACCINE IS LIKE A MEMORY

An introduction to the history and benefits of vaccines.

“A vaccine,” the author, a physician, writes, “is like a memory of a disease you never had.” In simple but not simplistic terms, LaRocca explains how vaccines work with the immune system to minimize the effects of certain diseases and traces the history of their development up to the creation of vaccines for Covid-19—crediting not only English physician Edward Jenner for popularizing the idea of smallpox inoculation in the late 18th century, but also Onesimus, an enslaved man who told Cotton Mather about a similar procedure in 1721. LaRocca ramps up the level of detail in the backmatter with descriptions of different sorts of germs, six types of vaccines, including those using mRNA and adenovirus, and a list of common infections (with symptoms) that can be prevented with vaccines. The message that vaccines are safe as well as effective comes through clearly in both the narrative and Marcotte’s cartoon illustrations of inoculated children surrounded by figurative dotted-line shields. The racially diverse cast of adults and children includes a hijab wearer, several people wearing face masks, and two using wheelchairs. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Authoritative and reassuring.