Power to the Parasites!

(Hardback)

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Description

Power to the Parasites! lets you in on a secret: Parasites are all around you, all the time, quietly running the world. You might think of them as slimy, disgusting freeloaders - tapeworms and roundworms and ticks and lice, too small to be important and too selfish to be valued. But by the end of this book, you'll realize that sometimes parasites are the good guys. Learn where you're most likely to find parasites in your own food (heads up, you might not want to eat any uncooked fish right before reading this book), and how parasitic infection changes the behavior of many organisms-including human beings. Parasites might be weird and mysterious, but the better we understand them, the less we have to fear about them. In fact, many parasites are in big trouble. With climate change threatening parasites around the world, there's no better time than right now to learn about these often-unseen creatures living among us.

Reviews

"Humorous and cleverly titled chapters--such as "A Plague on Both Your Houses," in which the author describes the Yersinia pestis that caused the bubonic plague--paired with animated illustrations by Mottram make sometimes gruesome tales about the history of parasites feel like a leisurely jaunt la Ms. Frizzle. . .This enjoyable read will have readers exclaiming "cool!" instead of "ew!"" --Publisher's Weekly, starred review

" An eye-opening, as well as stomach-churning, angle on who's really the boss in the natural world." --Kirkus, starred review

Author Bio

Chelsea Wood is an Associate Professor in the School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences at the University of Washington. Her research program explores the ecology of infectious disease in our changing world. Power to the Parasites is her first children's book. chelsealwood.com