Thomas Goetz's The Remedy: Robert Koch, Arthur Conan Doyle, and the Quest to Cure Tuberculosis was released in 2014❝ In The Remedy, the science journalist Thomas Goetz recounts the true and captivating history of the rivalry between two giants of science in the early days of germ theory: Robert Koch and Louis Pasteur. However, the most intriguing figure in the storyline is yet another character: Arthur Conan Doyle—famed author of the Sherlock Holmes detective series. At the time, Doyle was actually a physician, though of obscure reputation. He held a great deal of interest in the work of Koch, who in 1890 had announced he’d discovered a cure for consumption (tuberculosis). Goetz dedicates considerable time chronicling the history of this disease and thus, in a sense, his book is also a biography of tuberculosis—the greatest killer in human history. Doyle ultimately identifies Koch’s curative claims as fraudulent and eventually openly confronts Koch in the book’s most climactic scene, keeping the reader in eager anticipation. In this way, Goetz subtlety mimics Doyle’s style and keeps the reader enthralled in this gripping and suspenseful narrative. [PLOS.org]
 | THOMAS GOETZ is the former executive editor of Wired, bestselling author, & entrepreneur who explores how to create a culture of health. Watch his TED Med talk below, and learn more about booking Thomas for your next event today. |
