Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal – Hardcover by Mary Roach

Why We Shelved It:

A delightfully irreverent, scientifically rigorous, and laugh-out-loud funny exploration of the human digestive tract. Bestselling science writer Mary Roach takes readers on a grand gastronomic tour from the lips to the other end, investigating everything from canine saliva and astronaut nutrition to historical stomach ulcers and forensic forensics. Shelved proudly at the curious intersection of our Fiction & Dark Lore and Lifestyle & Botanical Wellness collections alongside Mary Roach’s Stiff and Amy Stewart’s Wicked Plants, this hardcover edition is a must-have for lovers of popular science and biological oddities.

The Work:

What actually happens to that bite of food once it slips past your teeth? In Gulp, Mary Roach dives deep into the science of digestion, traveling into laboratories, research facilities, and historical archives to answer the questions polite society ignores. With her signature wit and relentless curiosity, Roach uncovers the bizarre lengths scientists go to understand how our bodies process the world.

Inside this fascinating hardcover volume, readers will explore:

• Saliva & Sensory Science: How taste buds work, why pet food testers chew kibble, and the evolutionary marvel of spit.

• The Stomach's Secrets: The incredible true story of Alexis St. Martin, a 19th-century fur trapper with an open gunshot wound in his stomach that gave doctors a window into human digestion.

• Flatulence & Festering Mysteries: The chemistry of gas, odor control, and how submarines manage air quality on extended deployments.

• Smuggling & Prison Pockets: The historical and physiological realities of hiding contraband inside the human GI tract.

Equal parts educational and wildly entertaining, Gulp turns the science of eating and digestion into an unforgettable adventure.