Bill Bryson’s “The Body Illustrated – A Guide for Occupants” has been in the front of almost every book shop window that I have wandered past, since it launched towards the end of last year. And for good reason!!!
This book shot the top firstly, because it is a fresh and fact filled Bill Bryson book; and secondly it is absolutely packed with details about the human body that you may never have thought of or even imagined; and thirdly, right now we are living in an age of discovery, as the world emerges from a pandemic, now more than ever, people want to know more and more about the human body and all the inner workings.
Let’s start with the author, he has written countless books and if you enjoy gathering facts then look no further. Books on Shakespeare, the British Isles and my personal favourite and one of my very first Audio Books, A Walk in the Woods about his journey along the Appalachian Trail.
This book just happens to be richer in facts than his previous books, because it literally is the history of the science of the human body. It is written for the interested laymen, so not medically complicated, it is totally readable… and in small bites, very enjoyable. Some of the facts will intrigue you, some will leave you baffled at what were those “men in white lab coats” thinking of and other facts will infuriate you!!!
This is definitely not a book that you are going to sit down and read in a weekend, it is one of those books that is so packed with details that you have to pause and ponder several times a page, let along throughout each chapter. Over five hundred pages, and twenty three chapters of carefully selected illustrations and classic Bill Bryson’s intense depth of research. I am reviewing the illustrated version of the book and it is put together beautifully, with illustrations, classic art works and photographs on every double spread. Beautiful quotations throughout, and just a lovely book to wander through on a given day.
You don’t have to read it in order at all, this book is perfect for dipping. I immediately jumped to the chapter on sleep and was lost there for a at least a week… I am trying to read a chapter a week… it is heavy going and I am having to intersperse it with lots of lighter reading. That being said, it is a brilliant collection of “Did you know?” moments… so it helps to read it in a place where other folk are lingering!!!
This book was my first book mail of the year and honestly I am thrilled, it is going to take the year to get through it, not just because it is so packed with facts, but sometimes you have to just slow down and savour what you are learning. This is definitely the non-fiction book of the year for me.
Amazon Affiliate Link for Book in This Post.
These books were all given to us for review purposes by Penguin Random House South Africa. This is not a sponsored post and opinions expressed are entirely my own.