comment on Tone

The tone of the novel is highly varied, since Garrett does try to show all sides of the story of disease in the world. At times, the individual stories being told are combative, in that there were many professionals along the way who combated government and social policies in place that helped give rise to a variety of different diseases. These pioneers in the medical profession sought to change and break the rules in an effort to help save the world from epidemics. Additionally, at times the stories in the book can be accusatory, as each side seeks to lay blame on another party. From one researcher to another, from one government to another, the eradication of disease was as much political and social as it was medical. Because of this, any failure led to finger pointing and judgements, which only helped to further complicate the already difficult situation. Still, at other times, the tone of the book is highly technical, as the author simply gives statistics and medical concepts. These areas are necessary to really show the research being done in an area, but also help to convey a scientific sense to the book.