Eula Biss's On Immunity: An Inoculation examines vaccine hesitancy through the lens of a new mother's research into the fears and myths surrounding immunization. Biss, an essayist known for her work on race and identity, approaches the topic not as a scientific explainer but as a cultural critic, exploring why vaccines generate such intense anxiety. She traces the metaphors through which we understand immunity, from militaristic language about invasion and defense to fantasies of purity and pollution. The book is rich with literary and historical references, drawing on Voltaire, Bram Stoker, Rachel Carson, and Susan Sontag. Biss is sympathetic to parental anxiety even as she ultimately affirms vaccination's importance; she treats vaccine refusers as people responding to legitimate concerns about environmental toxicity and pharmaceutical industry trustworthiness, even if their conclusions are mistaken. On Immunity argues that our bodies are not isolated fortresses but sites of constant exchange with our environment, making immunity a matter of collective as well as individual concern. Published in 2014, the book became newly relevant during the COVID-19 pandemic. Biss writes with precision and literary elegance. Essential reading for anyone seeking to understand the cultural dimensions of public health debates.