I Contain Multitudes

I came across this book via the author's standard setting COVID reporting. And this book is not inferior to the former in any respect. I'm certainly not someone who has shown much interest in Natural Science topics before, certainly not into microbes. But Ed Yong has managed to present this subject as if it were the most exciting thing in the world. The author writes about his meetings with scientists and his conversations about their Area of Expertise. He does so in a manner that is at the same time easily understandable - and of utterly poetic quality. At times the beauty of Ed Yongs writing feels like reading a perfect poem. My only minor criticisms are these: The handling of the topic of autism needs some reflection, not only by the author, but also by the Natural scientists he talked to. And: in some places, the book would benefit from more brevity. I can hardly resent the author for the latter, because his enthusiasm for the subject speaks from every page - and this enthusiasm transfers to the readers' view of their everyday surroundings.