The Body: A Guide for Occupants - THE SUNDAY TIMES NO.1 BESTSELLER

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So couple that with the following, and the profound insight explains why race is purely a social construct. We live in an age in which we are killed, more often than not, by lifestyle. We are in effect choosing how we shall die, albeit without much reflection or insight.” For many, the stammering miraculously ceases when they sing their words, speak in a foreign language or talk to themselves. The majority of speakers recover from the condition by their teenage years and females seem to recover more easily than men . If you like Bryson's previous books, you should like this one. It's pop science, and more fun than it is ground-breaking, but as long as you're not planning to use it as your handbook for experimental surgery, then I see nothing wrong with that. And yes, we did get a little bit of humour, but that wasn't because Bryson made fun of certain things, but was very good at pointing out the hilarity of history and us silly homo sapiens.

No matter what the subject, Bryson’s style is consistent: snappy prose, engaging anecdotes, and fun facts, all tied together with a lot of curiosity and humor. At its worst, this can make for some superficial books—a meandering array of factoids with little structure—which in my experience plagues his history writing. But science seems to bring out the best in Bryson. Here, the writing is disciplined and controlled. He clearly did a great deal of research and organized his facts with care. And Bryson has a rare talent for research. You would think that, in our media-saturated age, most of the great stories and characters from history would be known. But somehow Bryson is always able to uncover an unsung hero with an eccentric personality. The history of science seems particularly rich in this.

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Most other mammals never suffer strokes, and for those that do it is a rare event. But for humans, it is the second most common cause of death globally, according to the World Health Organization. Why this should be is something of a mystery. Science, it's history, trials and errors but also impressive feats from hundreds of years ago, groundbreaking discoveries (the most well-known example being penicillin), modern appliances and procedures but also problems that will become more dangerous in the near future ... I was delighted how Bryson presented it all comprehensibly and explained it in a way every layman can understand, often giving examples from every-day occurrences, always showing just how much he is fascinated by the subject(s) himself.

Even today vitamins are an ill-defined entity. The term describes 13 chemical oddments that we need to function smoothly but are unable to manufacture for ourselves. Though we tend to think of them as closely related, they mostly have little in common apart from being useful to us. A truly amazing compendium on the human body aka "a warm wobble of flesh!" Truly engaging and enlightening. Occasionally I wanted to fast forward to avoid the details, but mainly I was truly engaged, appalled or enthralled!Almost 3/4ths of prescriptions written each year are for conditions that can’t be cured with antibiotics (like bronchitis). One caveat, particularly for Goodreads reviewers--more than our fair share of us have had frustrating or scary "adventures" through the medical system. Since Bryson spends a surprising amount of time discussing the things doctors *don't* know, this aspect of the text could be unsettling.

I went into this book with the attitude of "of course, Bill Bryson can make anything interesting", but I was still a little unsure if this was the right book for me. There are definitely interesting aspects of the body, but I'm more of a "fun fact here, quirky tidbit there" kinda person. I wasn't sure I wanted to read a whole book full of words I can't pronounce. But, no, Bill Bryson really can make anything interesting. If you don't have that kind of money lying about, you can also do it the old-fashioned way that involves heterosexual sex. I'm not here to judge your methods; make a human whichever way you please. What I am here to do is tell you that Bill Bryson has done it again! He has written yet another brilliant and vastly interesting book, this time about the human body. Whether you want to know about bones or skin or digestion, muscles or brains or bacteria, you'll find it in this book. I don't even know where to begin in telling you about the contents. Whilst some things I already knew and thus this was a refresher, there were even more that I didn't know and thus made my brain very happy. There are just so many interesting facts wrapped up in this book. A random few from my highlights: The Body: A Guide for Occupants has you covered! For those of us who haven't had a biology class since we fulfilled some course requirement ages ago, Bryson gives an excellent overview of what doctors and scientists know about all our different body parts and bodily functions. But as the title suggests, outright occupancy usually comes with a rental charge. The bill always comes due. Your body is a universe of mystery. A very large part of what happens on and within it happens for reasons that we don’t know – very often, no doubt, because there are no reasons. Evolution is an accidental process, after all.”

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Because we don´t understand, we should treat the body as good as possible with a diet of things and thoughts of which we know that they are not harmful don't smoke or do drugs and drink alcohol moderately As with so much in life, getting the balances right is delicate business. A wonderful successor to A Short History of Nearly Everything, this new book is an instant classic. It will have you marvelling at the form you occupy, and celebrating the genius of your existence, time and time again. The ideal gift for readers of every age who wish to discover more about themselves.