What goes in, must come out

It's amazing (and disturbing) what gets ingested, either accidentally, or on purpose.  Thanks to an early 20th century laryngologist named Dr. Chevalier Jackson, who developed a safe method of removing swallowed objects, and who decided to keep what he removed (yeah, I know), we have an inside view (well, more like an outside one now, right?), of one man's contribution to the medical profession.  Swallow: Foreign Bodies, Their Ingestion, Inspiration, and the Curious Doctor Who Extracted Them by Mary Cappello presents the captivating story of how an eccentric medical pioneer saved lives...and safety pins, coins, thumb tacks, miniature opera glasses, and much, much more.  And if, after reading the book, you decide you'd like to see Dr. Jackson's objects in person, consider paying a visit to The College of Physicians of Philadelphia's Mutter Museum.

Eeewww...

I wasn't going to write about this book because it gives me the heebie-jeebies, but the subject matter has been in the news a lot. And if something is in the news, it usually doesn't take long for someone to say, "hey, I should write a book about that!"  I just didn't think I'd see a book devoted to......wait for it......bed bugs.  Sure, they've been around, well, since forever, and it's unlikely they'll ever make the endangered list, but what's with the big bed bug uprising??  Have they secretly been gathering strength, hiding in microscopic bed bug caves, just waiting for the right moment to completely gross out the human race, in turn causing ordinarily sane travelers to carry sleeping bags and bug spray to hotels?  Well, if you want to know more about this very creepy infestation happening right under our, well, our sleeping bodies (eeewww!), read The Bed Bug Book: The Complete Guide to Prevention and Extermination.  "Don't let the bed bugs bite" never sounded so ominous...

Something to crow about

Did you know that Brave New World author, Aldous Huxley, wrote a children's story?  I didn't, at least not until a friend, who knows how much I love picture books, pointed it out on a cart of recently arrived titles.  It's called The Crows of Pearblossom, and I was completely charmed by it.  Warm and fuzzy it is not - a snake keeps eating Mrs. Crow's eggs, and with the help of Wise Old Owl, Mr. Crow brings about the snake's demise in a rather grim fashion - but Huxley's wit shines through, and the illustrations, created by Sophie Blackall, delightfully capture both the witty and edgy tone of this tale.