About this item
One hundred years ago, a mysterious and alarming illness spread across America's South, striking tens of thousands of victims. No one knew what caused it or how to treat it. People were left weak, disfigured, insane, and in some cases, dead. Award-winning science and history writer Gail Jarrow tracks this disease, commonly known as pellagra, and highlights how doctors, scientists, and public health officials finally defeated it. Illustrated with 100 archival photographs, Red Madness includes stories about real-life pellagra victims and accounts of scientific investigations. It concludes with a glossary, timeline, further resources, author's note, bibliography, and index.
About the Author
Gail Jarrow is the author of nonfiction books and novels, including: BLOOD AND GERMS: The Civil War Battle Against Wounds and DiseaseTHE POISON EATERS: Fighting Danger and Fraud in Our Food and DrugsSPOOKED!: How a Radio Broadcast and The War of the Worlds Sparked the 1938 Invasion of AmericaBUBONIC PANIC: When Plague Invaded AmericaFATAL FEVER: Tracking Down Typhoid MaryRED MADNESS: How a Medical Mystery Changed What We Eat THE AMAZING HARRY KELLAR, Great American MagicianLINCOLN'S FLYING SPIES: Thaddeus Lowe and the Civil War Balloon Corps ROBERT H. JACKSON: New Deal Lawyer, Supreme Court Justice, Nuremberg ProsecutorTHE PRINTER'S TRIAL: The Case of John Peter Zenger and the Fight for a Free Press Her nonfiction books have earned the Sibert Honor Book Award; the Jefferson Cup; Best Books awards from the National Science Teachers Association, New York Public Library, Kirkus Reviews, School Library Journal, and Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books; YALSA Award Nomination for Excellence in Nonfiction; and Orbis Pictus Honor by the National Council of Teachers of English. Jarrow has received additional awards and recognition from the American Booksellers Association, American Library Association, Public Library Association, the Society of School Librarians International, Junior Library Guild, and Bank Street College of Education. A graduate of Duke University and Dartmouth College, Gail Jarrow lives in Ithaca, New York.
