The Body: A Guide for the Occupants by Bill Bryson

Abstract

Bill Bryson is normally known for his travel books, which are excellent reads; he is such an easy raconteur. Anyone interested in weird and wonderful facts about how we are put together and how we work should read this book; it is pitched at the right level for everyone to find something of interest, though aimed primarily at the medical layman. Every inch is covered, from the skin to the gut, the nervous system and pain, the immune system, movement, food and sleep, to the beginning and the end of life. Balancing his sources between the published scientific and popular media, to interviews with friends and other key scientists from the medical and wider scientific community, you have anything but a dry account of who we are, how we got here and how we work. I defy you to not be amazed and breathless about the breadth and the complexity of the human body, after reading this book. I read this during the current coronavirus pandemic, and the chapters ‘Microbial you’ and ‘When things go wrong: diseases’ were scarily accurate with some of the statements, regarding what we are currently facing. The reference list includes sources for key quotes within the book and a good selection of further reading. Overall, an excellent, well-written book, interspersed with Bryson’s trademark humorous style; there are lots of laugh out loud moments in there too!