Parts of Kate Winkler Dawson's Death in the Air reads like the best fiction. People trying to navigate the streets when visibility was down to one yard. Buses and automobiles not being able to move. People dying because they can't get to the hospital, and doctors are swamped with house calls and can't get to their patients in a timely manner. And then there's John Reginald Christie, a quiet little man most people wouldn't look at twice, who was on a killing spree of his own.

Dawson's research is fantastic, both in explaining the physical causes of the deadly smog and in sharing survivors' (often heartbreaking) stories. Of course, there was a government coverup, but once the facts started coming out, it's easy to see how serial killer John Reginald Christie has been overshadowed by this horrendous pollution-- pollution that killed 12,000 people. The only bright side to the smog was the clean air legislation that began to be implemented around the world.

Death in the Air is an often spellbinding narrative about a dark time in history, but it does bog down in the details from time to time. In fact, I think the book would have been stronger if the author had left out Christie altogether. I'd heard about the smog many times, but now I really appreciate knowing exactly what happened. If you're interested in this period of time, give it a read. It's good.

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