Leech

Awesome

Satisfied with the Book. A Friends Recommendation and I was lucky enough to find it on this App... Amazing service and amazing Book. :)

Great and informative study of leeches, from people who obviously really care about their subject. If you're interested in leeches, start here.

This book is part of a series that presents a detailed natural and cultural history of a species. Each book is nicely sized, beautifully illustrated and an enjoyable easy read yet full of interesting facts. However, I initially thought that a volume on the leech might be pushing the concept - could such a creature sustain interest over a book length account? The answer is a most definite YES!Leeches, it turns out, are fascinating little worms that do not (quite) deserve their reputation as monstrous bloodsuckers. Or, at least, this is what the authors of this book ask us to believe. The book first presents a detailed account of the natural history, biology and reproductive behaviour of leeches, showing the little critters to be very strange even when left to their own devices. Subsequent chapters launch into a fascinating and in depth account of the various places leeches have appeared in human history. This is where the weird gets even weirder. I would never have thought that leeches were so desirable in the 19th century that some entrepreneurs made their fortune by turning swamps in to highly profitable leech farms! Nor that leeches have shaped fashions and inspired art. We also learn of how leeches have informed gothic horror (think vampires!) and how they continue, even today, to be used in surgery. The book is delightfully written throughout, demonstrating a fine sense of humour that knowingly hints at the often surreal nature of the tale being told. It's also lavishly illustrated throughout with many startling colour images (though some may not be for the feint hearted!)By the end I was persuaded that the story of leeches is a very human story. This book has opened my eyes to the weird world of bloodsucking worms and made me think again about how I might respond to a leech should I meet one. I'm not sure that I can yet say that I love leeches, but I certainly like them a whole lot more than I expected to! Highly recommended.

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