Marlene Zuk

An evolutionary biologist explores how germs, infections, bacteria, and viruses have shaped human life, examining the role of disease while answering such questions as why men die younger than women and how parasites can sometimes make us well.

Friendly Worms, Ladybug Sex, and the Parasites that Make Us who We are

Riddled with Life

In an engaging study of human disease, an evolutionary biologist argues that germs, infections, bacteria, and viruses have shaped human life, examining the role of disease while answering such questions as why men die younger than women, why most male birds do not have a penis, how parasites can sometimes make us well, and why we get STDs. Reprint.

Friendly Worms, Ladybug Sex, and the Parasites That Make Us Who We Are

I.m. ruzz

This books has parts that are so full of fascinating information I felt if it was 2000 pages I could read the entire thing in one night. Unfortunately, it also has parts that are so dry and flat that it ended up taking me weeks to get through it. It started out as a book I would recommend to nearly everyone interested in disease, and ends up a book I can only recommend to those few people I know would push through the dry sections to finish. 

I had hoped for a lot more practical information about just generally feeling at ease with our place in a complex interplay of competing life, and in the opening of the book she does offer a fair bit of that, but the net result of the book is me just generally being creeped out by how much stuff is out there eager to feed off me or kill me. 

Adding to that a strong anti-male theme throughout the book which barely tries to cover itself up and I found by the end I disliked the author a fair bit. I'm unclear what her past is, or what she's gone through as a female trying to make it in science, but i come off with the sense it hasn't been easy. Her voice echoes a pitiful theme seen in so many popular sitcoms these days of nearly retarded male making more work for the enlightened, calm, focused female who keeps it all together. 

I suspect Oprah and her would get on just fine.

Riddled with Life Friendly Worms, Ladybug Sex, and the Parasites that Make Us who We are

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