The Book of Blood: From Legends and Leeches to Vampires and Veins

by HP Newquist

Overview

Winner of the Magnolia Award

 

HP Newquist takes young readers on an engaging tour of the world of blood, from
ancient history to modern science—with an occasional trip to the very strange side of
the most important tissue in our bodies. Oddly enough, scientists began to understand
this fascinating fluid only within the past one hundred years and how its microscopic
components nourish the entire body.
Whether the tales of vampires, medieval medical practices, and Mayan sacrificial
rites captivate or terrify, this comprehensive investigation into blood’s past and present
will surely enthrall. And if this account is a little bloodcurdling, well, that’s half the
fun!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780547315843
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	08/07/2012
Pages:	160
Sales rank:	524,932
Product dimensions:	10.00(w) x 7.80(h) x 0.70(d)
Age Range:	10 - 12 Years

About the Author

HP Newquist (The Book of Blood, Here There Be Monsters) writes about all kinds of things, from human brains and giant squids to monsters and music. When he's not writing, he's traveling with his wife and two daughters, playing his guitar, or exploring new technologies. He and his family live in Connecticut and you can find out more about him at www.newquistbooks.com.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"A thorough and humorous exploration of our relationship with blood."—VOYA

"This transfusion of information offers a rewarding experience to readers whether they're after the specific differences between blood types and other biological data or just gore's icky lore."—Kirkus

"Blood-spattered pages play into the subject matter's potential for ickiness, even while Newquist makes it clear that blood is worthy of fascination, not fear."—Publisher's Weekly

"The conversational tone and the faux blood-spattered pages, replete with sidebars, color photos, archival drawings, and medical illustrations, are sure to pull readers in."—School Library Journal

"Newquist's prose is smooth enough that several chapters could actually function as nonfiction readalouds."—Bulletin

Editorial Reviews

Blood looks too simple to be so important: just a bright splash of liquid that seems as if it isn’t much different from paint or fruit juice or cherry-colored water.” In 11 concise chapters, Newquist (Here There Be Monsters) demystifies one of the most elemental and (literally) vital components of life as we know it. After an overview of the complex makeup of blood, Newquist dives into humankind’s history with, beliefs about, and study of blood, including missteps and misconceptions along the way; both ritual and medical bloodletting are discussed, the latter persisting as a method of treatment well into the 1800s (“George Washington was treated with bloodletting—and then died from it”). Newquist goes into detail to explain how blood moves through the human body and the critical role it plays in keeping us alive, also touching on hematophageous (blood-drinking) animals and vampire legends. Photographs and period illustrations appear throughout, and blood-spattered pages play into the subject matter’s potential for ickiness, even while Newquist makes it clear that blood is worthy of fascination, not fear. Ages 10–14. Agent: Ken Wright, Writers House. (Aug.)

Publishers Weekly

"A thorough and humorous exploration of our relationship with blood."—VOYA

"This transfusion of information offers a rewarding experience to readers whether they're after the specific differences between blood types and other biological data or just gore's icky lore."—Kirkus

"Blood-spattered pages play into the subject matter's potential for ickiness, even while Newquist makes it clear that blood is worthy of fascination, not fear."—Publisher's Weekly

"The conversational tone and the faux blood-spattered pages, replete with sidebars, color photos, archival drawings, and medical illustrations, are sure to pull readers in."—School Library Journal

"Newquist's prose is smooth enough that several chapters could actually function as nonfiction readalouds."—Bulletin —

From the Publisher

Gr 5–8—Blood, writes Newquist, "is one of the most fascinating and fabled substances in history." In this compendium, readers will learn about the red fluid's biological function as well as its historical and cultural significance. Several chapters cover its importance in ancient cultures and explain how our knowledge about its role in the body developed over time. Information about early medical practices such as bloodletting (including the use of leeches) will grab students' interest, as will the sections on hematophagous (blood-drinking) animals and vampire legends. The chapters on the physiology of the circulatory system and the components of blood are more readable than those in many textbooks. The conversational tone and the faux blood-spattered pages, replete with sidebars, color photos, archival drawings, and medical illustrations, are sure to pull in readers. Unfortunately, there are no source notes to support blanket statements such as, "Everything you put in your body ends up in your blood," and "Your blood is more responsible for keeping you alive than anything else in your body." This book's content is similar to that in Trudee Romanek's Squirt: The Most Interesting Book You'll Ever Read About Blood (Kids Can, 2006), although it covers some topics in greater depth and has more of a narrative format.—Jackie Partch, Multnomah County Library, Portland, OR

School Library Journal

Newquist expands considerably on the premise that "[t]here is more to blood than that it's red and kind of gross" without neglecting to keep the "kind of gross" parts in view. Along with a suitably gore-spattered parade of Aztec and other bloodthirsty gods and blood rituals throughout history, the author takes quick looks at various kinds of blood in the animal kingdom and at vampires in modern pop culture. He also recaps the development of our understanding of blood and the circulatory system from ancient times through the scientific revolution, and thence on to modern uses for blood in medicine and research. In considerably more detail, though, he tallies blood's individual components and the specific functions of each in keeping our bodies alive and healthy. Aside from a debatable claim that "[e]verything you put in your body ends up in your blood," this transfusion of information offers a rewarding experience to readers whether they're after the specific differences between blood types and other biological data or just gore's icky lore. It's nicely enhanced by a generous array of photographs, microphotographs and artists' renderings. A closer focus on biology than bloodshed makes this a natural companion for Tanya Lloyd Kyi's more anthropological Seeing Red: The True Story of Blood (2012). (bibliography, Web sites) (Nonfiction. 10-13)

Kirkus Reviews