"The story of how the Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness (formerly AAHL) came to be could not be a more timely reminder of how important projects get done. CSIRO Architect William (Bill) Curnow gives us a mesmerizing, behind-the-scenes glimpse into the role serendipity, dogged commitment, and deeply creative juices stirring in a pot of committee-driven stew played in bringing to life a groundbreaking, precedent-setting design for biological containment centres...and through it all is the ever-irrepressible spirit and keen intellect of Bill Curnow, a man not only known for never taking "No" for an answer, but who rarely even acknowledged the naysayers as he smiled, maneuvered, and cajoled his way to the "Yes" answer he knew was right. I first met Bill Curnow when we were both involved in the design of another type of containment infrastructure - prisons. I was immediately struck by his energy, his intellect, his perseverance, his sense of humour, and most importantly, by what I later came to understand was his kindly patience that allowed the rest of us to catch up with his insights and solutions. Bill is that rare individual who selflessly seems to make every enterprise he's involved in better than it would have been without his participation. For anyone interested in learning how great projects get done, I urge them to read this book - it is a primer on how to successfully navigate one's way through roadblocks, lesser ideas, and committee governan