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Gulp
447 pages
An unforgettable, taboo-breaking tour through the surreal and fascinating mechanics of the human digestive system.
What it feels like
Reading this book feels like taking a brisk, fearless tour through the most taboo and surreal landscapes of the human body. The narrative is driven by an insatiable, slightly irreverent curiosity, asking the bizarre questions about digestion and anatomy that most people are too polite to voice. The prose is highly accessible and humorous, transforming complex biological science into an eye-opening, sometimes delightfully gross adventure. You are pulled along on a journey that visits pet food labs and live stomachs, maintaining a mood that is both deeply fascinating and wonderfully strange. It is a perfect read for those who devour popular science that does not shy away from the messy, fascinating realities of what makes us human.
- Mood
- surreal
- fascinating
- unflinching
- eye-opening
- Tone
- curious
- irreverent
- fearless
- humorous
- Pace
- brisk
- Themes
- the surreal nature of the human body · taboo bodily functions · scientific curiosity · the intersection of humanity and biology
- The writing
- Inquisitive and accessible, blending scientific inquiry with humorous, taboo-breaking observations.
- The arc
- Moves from everyday curiosity about food and flavor to a surreal, unflinching appreciation for the bizarre mechanics of the human body.
- Who it's for
- Readers who love popular science delivered with a fearless, slightly gross, and deeply curious sense of humor.
Content notes
- bodily functions
- medical procedures
- animal testing mentions
- death mentions
About the book
The ever-curious and always bestselling Mary Roach takes us down the hatch on an unforgettable tour of our insides. The alimentary canal is classic Mary Roach terrain: the questions inspired by our insides are as taboo, in their way, as the cadavers in Stiff and every bit as surreal as the universe of zero gravity explored in Packing for Mars. Why is crunchy food so appealing? Why is it so hard to find names for flavors and smells? Why doesn't the stomach digest itself? How much can you eat before your stomach bursts? Can constipation kill you? Did it kill Elvis? We meet scientists who tackle the questions no one else thinks -- or at least has the courage -- to ask. And we go on location to a pet food taste-test lab, a bacteria transplant, and into a live stomach to observe the fate of a meal. Like all of Roach's books, Gulp is as much about human beings as it is about human bodies.
Description from Open Library.
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