Anatomies

January 14, 2013
Mixing biology, art, literature, and pop culture from the ancient past up to the present, Aldersey-Williams (The Most Perfect Molecule) provides an enlightening and thoroughly engaging view of the human body. Although he divides the corpus into part-specific chapters, Aldersey-Williams avoids a reductionist view of the subject, reflecting instead on how our components come together to make us fully human. Along the way he relates myriad humorous, informative, and provocative stories—in the chapter on flesh, he describes the “autocannibalism” of food critic Stefan Gates, who “converted fat extracted from his body by liposuction into glycerol for use in icing a cake, which he then proceeded to eat.” He also apprises readers of how to make a shrunken head, and describes “a new kind of love token” being pioneered by artist Tobie Kerridge: “rings made from the bone tissue of their partner.” He also explains why it’s not uncommon to find subjects with two left feet in paintings, the science behind facial recognition, and the skeletal demands of ballet. From the dissection laboratory to a live-model drawing class, Aldersey-Williams illuminates the contours of the human body from head to toe. 16 illus. Agent: Antony Topping, Greene & Heaton (U.K.)

April 15, 2013

This engaging cultural history will appeal to readers who appreciate multidisciplinary perspectives on the subject of anatomy. British science writer Aldersey-Williams (Periodic Tales) draws upon his extensive knowledge of art and history, as well as science, to provide here an elegant cultural history of human anatomy. His clever titles for the parts of the book feature, e.g., a prolog entitled "The Anatomy Lesson," offering Rembrandt's The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Tulp as an entry point to the intellectual inquiry. In Part One, "The Whole," he introduces the body as an entity composed of two fundamental components, flesh and bones. Then he "dissects" the body in Part Two, "Carving Up the Territory." Pertinent chapters include the "The Head," "The Face," "The Brain," "The Heart," "Blood," etc. Throughout, the author interweaves allusions to art, poetry, history, and science, demonstrating ways in which each discipline relates to, and illuminates, the others. VERDICT This provocative book will appeal to a broad group of readers who enjoy histories that cross disciplines. Gross anatomy this isn't!--Lynne Maxwell, Villanova Univ. Sch. of Law Lib., PA

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