The Wisdom of Whores: Bureaucrats, Brothels and the Business of AIDS

“[A] rollicking, eye-opening, hilarious account of the underbelly of international AIDS research.”―Carlin Romano, Philadelphia Inquirer

As an epidemiologist researching AIDS, Elizabeth Pisani has been involved with international efforts to halt the disease for fourteen years. With swashbuckling wit, fierce honesty, and more than a little political incorrectness, she dishes on herself and her colleagues as they try to prod reluctant governments to fund HIV prevention for the people who need it most: drug injectors, gay men, sex workers, and johns. With verve and clarity, Pisani shows the general reader how her profession really works; how easy it is to draw wrong conclusions from “objective” data; and, shockingly, how much money is spent so very badly. 12 illustrations