I Contain Multitudes

"That multilayered significance is what English science writer and microbiology elucidator Ed Yong explores in I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life ( public library ) — a book so fascinating and elegantly written as to be worthy of its Whitman reference , in which Yong peels the veneer of the visible to reveal the astonishing complexity of life thriving beneath and within the crude confines of our perception."

"This is a book about the millions of microbes that live inside us, and yet — it’s not gross! As you might guess from the Walt Whitman reference in the title, Ed Yong is a romantic — and a tremendously fun science writer. The book took me from laughter to near-theological epiphany, and best of all, it left me with actual facts about bacteria (rather than just vague fears) that I’ve found can come in handy as I go about my day, living in the world."

"Ed Yong, with his two exquisite books on microorganisms and on animal senses: "I Contain Multitudes" and "An Immense World.""