Review by Booklist Review
*Starred Review* From George Little Mouth of Horrors Washington to Marie You Glow, Girl Curie, Bragg chronicles with ghoulish glee the chronic or fatal maladies that afflicted 19 historical figures. Nonsqueamish readers will be entranced by her riveting descriptions of King Tut's mummification (and the brutal treatment that mummy has received in modern times); the thoroughly septic doctoring that hastened or at least contributed to the deaths of Mozart, Napoleon, James A. Garfield, and others; the literal dissolution of Henry VIII's body ( While lying in state, it is believed that his toxic remains exploded, and some of his royal splendidness dripped out the sides of the coffin overnight ); and the outrageous fates of Einstein's brain, Galileo's fingers, and other coroners' souvenirs. The author tucks quick notes on at least marginally relevant topics, such as leeching, scurvy, presidential assassins, and mummy eyes ( If mummy eyeballs are rehydrated, they return to almost normal size ), between the chapters and closes with generous lists of nontechnical print resources on each of her subjects. O'Malley's cartoon portraits and spot art add just the right notes of humor to keep the contents from becoming too gross. Usually. Despite occasional farfetched claims it's hard to believe that Charles Darwin puked four million times, even though he was fanatical about keeping personal health records this all-too-informative study deserves the wild popularity it will without doubt acquire.--Peters, John Copyright 2010 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 5-9-Georgia Bragg has her tongue firmly in cheek as she describes "how some of the most important people who ever lived-died" in this engaging book (Walker, 2011). Beginning with King Tut and moving chronologically through to Albert Einstein, Bragg explains in a conversational style what maladies brought 19 of the great ones down. Listeners will be clued in to Henry VIII's gluttony, George Washington's little mouth of horrors, and James Garfield's oh-so-slow death by ignorance. Narrator L.J. Ganser uses sarcasm, timing, pauses, and tone to wring out every last ounce of disgusting, gross misery from the deaths of Julius Caesar, Cleopatra, Christopher Columbus, Napoleon, Mozart, and others. There are humorous subtitles to each story, such as "Marie Curie: You Glow Girl!," and sidebars that add to the history. Be sure to pair this with the print version so students can giggle at Kevin O'Malley's hysterical illustrations. A perfect choice for boys who are reluctant readers.-Tricia Melgaard, formerly Centennial Middle School, Broken Arrow, OK (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
The demises of nineteen famous people, beginning with King Tut and ending with Albert Einstein, are recounted in gory detail. Attempts to lighten the accounts through use of a jokey tone and conversational slang can tiptoe into tastelessness; nevertheless, readers are warned in an introduction, and reluctant ones may snap this up. Crosshatched black-and-white spot art appears throughout the text. Reading list, websites. Ind. (c) Copyright 2011. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
The most reluctant of readers will find it difficult to resist this consistently disgusting chronicle of the gruesome deaths of 19 will famous people. Bragg opens with King Tut, discussing in gory details the embalming and mummification processes of the ancient Egyptians. Among the many macabre details is an explanation for why mummy eye sockets look empty: "Eyeballs shrink to almost nothing during the drying process" (the author notes that if mummy eyeballs are rehydrated, they return to almost normal size). Among the other famous figures profiled are Henry VIII, whose corpse exploded in its coffin while lying in state; George Washington, who was drained of 80 ounces of his blood by doctors before dying; and Marie Curie, who did herself in with constant radiation exposure. The accounts of how ill or injured people were treated by doctors through the 19th century reveal that medical practices were usually more lethal than the maladies. Between each chapter, there is a page or two of related and gleefully gross facts. Bragg's informal, conversational style and O'Malley's cartoon illustrations complement the flippant approach to the subject; the energetically icky design includes little skulls and crossbones to contain page numbers. Engaging, informative and downright disgusting. (sources, further reading, websites, index)(Nonfiction. 10-14)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
