Blood: An Epic History of Medicine and Commerce

Sure, 'Blood' is not for the squeamish as some passages can be very graphic! Plus, very detailed, it is at times quite technical from a medical perspective and, therefore, maybe a bit hard to follow.

Having said that, here's a broad and enticing book. Not only because it's a very good scientific look into an interesting topic but, also and especially, because dealing with the fascinating, curious, shocking, and at times frankly weird, history behind blood transfusions, Davis Starr offers an engaging questioning of how we deal with blood as a resource. Is it only a natural human tissue or, does its use makes it a product to be submitted to the same trade laws as any other goods? The debate, extremely relevant considering the health and show more safety factors attached to it (see the appalling account of how the AIDS epidemic unfolded) is haunting the whole book and yet, looking at different views in different countries (USA, Japan, France...) the answer is not as straightforward as it seems...

History, science, ethics... 'Blood' has it all and, even if daunting at times, it is an engrossing read about one of our most valuable resource. Interesting and engaging. show less

Fantastic. The early history of blood transfusion was interesting, but I was afraid I 'd lose interest when he started talking about blood as a commodity. I was wrong. Thoroughly engrossing and important