Book Bites: Biological War

Biological War: A Scenario by Annie Jacobsen
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

Jacobsen’s “Biological War” is, in the most academic sense of the word, bullshit. The book is not one to let the facts get in way of a gripping narrative. If this were marketed closer to fiction it would be a fascinating page-turner. However, Jacobsen’s narrative peddles such a staggering volume of utterly specious claims (Mongols caused the Black Death, COVID-19 was a lab leak), that the book ends up feeling like the tinfoil hat ravings of a doomsday prepper.

Its bad enough that I'm now wondering if her previous book, Nuclear War, which I loved, is as shoddily thrown together.

This hypothetical mega-plague relies on, no joke, an exploding Russia lab (even though there have been previous lab explosions which did not result in mass death), a rave-attending Catholic study abroad student, jetsetting rich assholes and Gavin Newsom’s turn to podcasting. The scenario also relies on LA's Skid Row as a major disease vector; in doing so Jacobsen (accidentally or no) makes unrestrained late-stage capitalism the main driver of this disease. So, according to Pulitzer-prize finalist and reporter Annie Jacobsen, re-appropriating wealth from Smaugish billionaires will stop the next COVID. 

 

If the text would at least admit its far-flung (and sometimes downright false) nature, there could be something of a discussion. As is, Biological War is best shelved alongside slop fiction and skipped.

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Book Bites: Piranesi

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Piranesi is a delightful mystery box of a novel. We read the journals of a man wandering endless hallways of marble statues, of rooms filled with clouds, and tides that crash through the house. Clarke's prose and pacing is perfect here; revealing the mysteries of this impossible house word by propulsive word. Along the way we encounter shadowy scholars and dangerous interlopers and covered-up murders. Those willing to be confused by Clarke's intentionally spare narrator at the start will find delight by book's end.

P.S. I've seen a lot of readings claiming Piranesi is some sort of cypher for mental illness? While there's certainly an argument to be made (and, as always, art is subjective) removing the book's magical elements with labored metaphor would suck the air right out of this book's balloon. Let the magic be magic, y'all.

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Book Bites: Say Hello to the Bad Guys

Say Hello to the Bad Guys: How Professional Wrestling's New World Order Changed America by Marc Raimondi
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Say Hello to the Bad Guys is, essentially, a TV recap blog expanded into book form. Make no mistake, it’s an absolute delight for wrestling fans and grown-up nWo kids, but the bulk of the text is dedicated to recapping WCW story beats between 1996-2000, including Nielsen ratings and PPV buy numbers. The behind-the-scenes reporting is fascinating and Raimondi does well to juggle contradictory sources. There is also some analysis of how nWo fits with reality tv (and later Trumpist politics), but mostly it’s a recap of WCW Monday Nitros Past, which for those who are nWo 4-Life, should be a ton of fun.

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