Grasping a virus

The Aids Handbook
John Hubley
2003
Macmillan, Oxford
154 pages

Reviewed by Claire Roberts-Lamont

As John Hubley promises in his preface, the third edition of The Aids Handbook gives a broad overview of the physiological, biomedical, social and political issues surrounding Aids. This generalist approach makes the handbook an ideal starting point for anyone who wants an introduction to Aids. Hubley assumes the reader knows nothing and he broadly covers many areas – so that by the time the book is read one has a very clear, but general, picture of all of the components of the virus.

Hubley manages to explain the issues and takes a middle ground. His neutrality makes the book palatable to everyone. The reader does not see what Hubley’s stance is on any of the very charged issues – such as condom distribution or some governments’ hesitancy to respond to the disease. This makes the book useful for the Aids activist who has been working on the political front and wants information

"It helps understand what social issues there are that make women more susceptible than men to the virus"

on the prospect of developing a vaccine or how exactly antiretroviral drugs work in the body. On the other hand, it is also a good book for the virologist who wants to understand the definition of voluntary testing and counselling or what social issues there are that make women more susceptible than men to the virus.

The Aids Handbook focuses on developing countries because that is where Aids is most prevalent but Hubley also draws examples from developed countries. This reminds the reader that Aids is a global disease that has touched most parts of the world.

Hubley also stresses how Aids programmes need to be designed differently for men, women, and children. Within those groups there are also subgroups that need to be considered, like sex workers. By emphasising the different needs of individual groups, Hubley hints at the sophistication that needs to underpin Aids programmes.

Hubley concludes with an excellent section that provides the reader with an action plan for fighting Aids. This quick overview gives a skeleton outline of what a comprehensive Aids programme should contain. He briefly describes each component. This gives the reader a good idea of what a holistic response to Aids should require.

A criticism of taking such an apolitical and generalist approach is that at some points the book reads dryly like a textbook. Hubley steers away from the layers of controversy surrounding Aids, which makes the book widely accessible, but at times a little sterile. A very good companion to this book would be Catherine Campbell’s Letting Them Die: Why HIV/Aids prevention programmes fail (reviewed here) which explores the complexity of running HIV/Aids prevention and treatment programmes.

In conclusion, The Aids Handbook is – as the title suggests – a useful introductory book, and it leaves the reader with appetite for finding out more. The Further Information section at the end is an easy reference guide to more in depth study.

Claire Roberts-Lamont is a health promotion specialist in London. She previously worked in southern Africa on HIV/AIDS and community health projects