A chronicle of Victorian London's worst cholera outbreak traces the day-by-day efforts of Dr. John Snow, who put his own life on the line in his efforts to prove his previously dismissed contagion theory about how the epidemic was spreading.

Preface --Monday, August 28 : the night-soil men -- Saturday, September 2 : eyes sunk, lips dark blue -- Sunday, September 3 : the investigator -- Monday, September 4 : that is to say, Jo has not yet died -- Tuesday, September 5 : all smell is disease -- Wednesday, September 6 : building the case -- Friday, September 8 : the pump handle -- Conclusion : the ghost map -- Epilogue : Broad Street revisited -- Author's note -- Acknowledgments -- Appendix : notes on further reading -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index.