A Good Time to Be Born
How Science and Public Health Gave Children a Future

Not my cup of tea. A good chunk of the book is a series of sad stories about dead children from history, literature and elsewhere. The author makes numerous interesting cultural observations about motherhood, but I was looking for more objective information about what led to the dramatic decline in......more

This book is a survey of the medical breakthroughs of the past couple hundred years that have led to an astounding decline in infant and child mortality. The infant mortality rate in the U.S. in 2017 was 5.8 deaths for every 1000 births. As recently as 1915, the rate was 100 deaths for every 1000 bi......more

I received a digital galley of "A Good Time to be Born," from Net Galley in exchange for a fair review. In general, this book gives an insightful overview of the medical advances over the past few centuries that have been critical in improving infant and child mortality. Klass does a nice job reviewi......more

I admit first that I have been a fan of Perri Klass for years because of her ability to bring difficult medical information into clear and humane focus. This latest volume, which is more medical history than anything else, is a fascinating look at infant mortality and, thankfully, how things have im......more

If you are concerned about people who refuse vaccines or who do not take disease seriously, or if you worry about your children or grandchildren or young relatives, read this book. Klass takes the reader through the whole grim history of child mortality -- and how medical and public health professio......more