The Fever of 1721

December 1, 2015

Coss's gem of colonial history immerses readers into 18th-century Boston and introduces a collection of fascinating people and intriguing circumstances. The author's masterly work intertwines Boston's smallpox epidemic with the development of New England Courant publisher James Franklin's radical press. The first part of the book focuses on the scourge of smallpox and the heroic efforts of Zabdiel Boylston, the lone physician who dared to save lives through inoculation, a practice denigrated and dismissed by other doctors. The second part turns toward a fever of a political nature, the democratization of Boston's press. These medical and political revolutions occurred simultaneously, with the two major protagonists, Boylston and Franklin, acting in daring and defiant ways. Other important figures from the era are also present, including a complex Cotton Mather and a teenage Benjamin Franklin. This volume provides context for early revolutionary ideas that stirred decades before the United States' break with Britain. VERDICT Unlike many other works on colonial America, including Richard Hofstadter's America at 1750 or James Deetz's In Small Things Forgotten, Coss's focus on a specific location at a specific time fleshes out the complex and exciting scene in sharp detail, creating a historical account that is fascinating, informational, and pleasing to read.--Jeffrey Meyer, Mt. Pleasant P.L., IA

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