Why It’s So Hard to Write About Science
Understanding something like a pandemic requires engagement with more than just biology: Your weekly guide to the best in books
COVID-19 put new and unexpected demands on science writers. Forthefamed journalist David Quammen, writing a book about it meant playing a constant game of catch-up, because,as Joshua Sokol writes, the science “.” Today, those on the beat are also up against a heightened mistrust of expertise, making the job even harder. Deborah Birx’s book on the Trump administration’s response to the pandemic clarifies the dangers of this attitude. She gives readers a sense of some of the misinformation that was coming from inside the White House—and the regret she feltas Richard J. Tofel writes. Tofel makes the case that ; by providing a record of the government’s failings, the book can help us understand why we suffered such monumental losses in 2020.
