INSIDE THE OUTBREAKS - Softcover

Pendergrast ably recounts the last half century of [epidemics] . . . complete with the mystery, intrigue, and gory details of your favorite police procedural drama. SEED

Thorough, ambitious . . . The stories of EIS adventures in places such as Africa and the Middle East and throughout the United States are fascinating.

Since its founding in 1951, the Epidemic Intelligence Service, a training/service program for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, has waged war on disease. When an epidemic hits, the EIS will be there to crack the case, no matter how deadly. Over the years it has had success battling polio, cholera, and smallpox, to name a few, and in recent years has turned to the epidemics plaguing us now H1N1, HIV/AIDS, and violence, among others.

The successful EIS model has spread internationally: former EIS officers have gone on to become leaders in the realm of public health and have helped to establish similar programs around the world.

Inside the Outbreaks takes readers on a riveting journey through the history of this remarkable organization, following EIS officers on their globetrotting quest to eliminate the most lethal and widespread threats to the world s health.

An impressive, occasionally awe-inspiring narrative . . . Fans of medical mysteries will find scores of EIS case histories to slake their appetites in this meticulous history. Kirkus Reviews

Riveting. Journal of Clinical Investigation

MARK PENDERGRAST is the author of four other nonfiction books: Mirror Mirror, Uncommon Grounds, Victims of Memory, and For God, Country and Coca-Cola.