Reviewed by Suzi Steffen

The Speckled Monster: A Historical Tale of Battling Smallpox follows the intertwined stories of two 18-century parents—one a British noblewoman, one an American doctor—who listened to tales from Turkish women and slaves, and pushed for a then-radical solution to smallpox: inoculation. Under Jennifer Lee Carrell’s deft hand, Lady Mary Wortley Montagu and Dr. Zabdiel Boylston both rise to life as compelling characters. Their fears, their struggles against those around them who did not believe in their methods, and their eventual triumphs make for excellent reading.

The Speckled Monster is not dryly written academic history, though doubtless a high-school history teacher trying to interest her students in this time period could use the book as a starting point. Occasionally, Carrell and her editors indulge in too much detail—a problem stemming from extensive knowledge of the subject—and this makes the book longer than necessary.

And, frankly, the tone of some scenes, like the one that opens the book—with references to “an assassin emerging from the streets of London” and “the virus multiplying in the dark”—wouldn’t be out of place in a pop science book about “the coming plague.” But Carrell, a historian with a doctorate in English and American literature from Harvard, rises far above any sensational treatment of the horrors of smallpox. Her skill in researching and recreating the moods of a long-gone time more than compensate for the subject matter. And Carrell’s recreations of smallpox epidemics, while comparatively restrained, carry the weight of finely-written glimpses into the emotions and experiences of smallpox victims.

The fast pace and inherent drama of the narrative make this book, especially during a time when Americans fear a resurgence of smallpox, informative and dramatic reading.