In Herding Immunity, the public health writer, journalist, and advocate, Stacy Mintzer Herlihy tells the fascinating story of the history of vaccines in America. She reminds us how antivaccine activism is not new and even goes back to time of the founding colonies, but then takes us through a golden era when parents saw polio and other vaccines as miracle interventions. However, the last couple of decades have not always been kind to vaccines or the scientists who invented them, explaining in a straightforward way how vaccines became falsely linked to autism and other conditions, and the harassment that some of us in the scientific community have endured especially during the COVID pandemic. It is an excellent summary, an easy read, and one which I think will find a wide audience.

Peter Hotez, professor of Pediatrics and Molecular Virology & Microbiology, co-director of the Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development, dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine

The campaign to vaccinate against Covid-19 wasn’t the first to encounter a tidal wave of disinformation, although outlets like X and Facebook have proven ideal media for stirring confusion and panic. This well-written, timely and useful book provides historical context, reminds us of what vaccines have achieved and points to their continual promise in our battles with disease.

Arthur Allen, author of Vaccine: The Controversial Story of Medicine's Greatest Lifesaver