BLIGHT: Fungi and the Coming Pandemic, by Emily MonossonThere’s a scene in Don DeLillo’s novel “White Noise” in which the protagonist reminisces with an ex-wife who was “ultrasensitive to many things,” as she puts it. “Sunlight, air, food, water, sex,” he says. Monosson’s book takes up the other side. Fungal infections of the skin tend not to be life-threatening; it’s when they invade the blood that they can be lethal. Being warmblooded has provided humans and other mammals with a degree of protection: Most fungi prefer lower temperatures; we run too hot.

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Persons: Emily Monosson There’s, Don DeLillo’s, ultrasensitive, ”, Emily Monosson’s, “, Louie Schwartzberg’s, Merlin, Candida auris, warmblooded