'Brilliant' TIM SPECTOR
'Excellent' HENRY MARSH
'Thrilling' VENKI RAMAKRISHNAN
Antibiotics: one of humanity’s greatest achievements – but invented by microbes.
An epic narrative of discovery and innovation – but also of extraction and exploitation.
This is the spellbinding story of how we have burned through the fossil fuels of medicine.
Since their advent, antibiotics have saved millions of lives, marking one of the greatest medical advances in our history. Dangerous Miracle weaves together the grand arc of the evolution of antibiotics over millions of years with a history of the past century: first as we mined the earth for naturally occurring antibiotic molecules, then as we learned to synthesise our own.
But like fossil fuels, antibiotics are a finite resource which we’ve regarded as a cheap, everlasting fuel. They are unlike other drugs: every time we use them we increase the possibility of antibiotic resistance emerging, risking their future effectiveness. If we want antibiotics to have a future, we need to prepare to adapt. And fast.
Rich with pioneering characters, great breakthroughs and grave risks, Dangerous Miracle is a grand drama of science, history and politics. It is a revelatory account of the miraculous history and uncertain future of antibiotics.
‘An enjoyable, compelling and absolutely essential read’ KATE BINGHAM
‘Eye-opening and thrilling … Both an important history and a vital call to arms to change the way new drugs are discovered’ MATTHEW COBB
"This history of scientific discovery and corporate greed ... chronicles arguably the most significant technological advance of the 20th century ... Shaw’s lively history is a valiant attempt to shine a spotlight on the crisis [of antibiotic resistance] and it's a stark warning of how humanity has squandered a precious resource" - Sunday Times
"Shaw… skilfully blends science and health-writing with history, politics, patent law and more. Crucially, he also shows how antibiotics underpinned the forging of the modern pharmaceutical industry and Big Pharma" - Bookseller
