Quackery : A Brief History of the Worst Ways to Cure Everything by Lydia Kang (US edition, Hardcover Paper over boards) - 9780761189817

1) COCKTAIL PARTY SCIENCE FOR THE MORBIDLY CURIOUS: The weird. The creepy. The outrageously dangerous. Every chapter includes thrilling and disturbing stories and photos that pull you in with outlandish, humorously twisted details, but leave you with a solid lesson in how medicine is a frightening, but evolving process of trial and error-not to mention a treasure trove of amazing-but-true historical facts. 2) QUIRKY MEDICAL & SCIENCE HISTORIES SELL: From Dr. Mutter's Marvels to Stiff to Wicked Plants, there's huge interest in the history of medicine, especially when it comes to the disturbing or misguided attempts of the past. Look no further than the plethora of museums on medical science (the Mutter, the Morbid Anatomy Museum, the International Museum of Surgical Science, and the Science Museum of Minnesota, which includes a collection of "questionable medical devices," to name a few). With its combination of morbid curiosity, humor, and storytelling, Quackery will definitely appeal to this audience.3) AUTHORSHIP: Together, the authors make the perfect team to tell this story of medical history. Dr. Lydia Kang is a practicing physician (and YA novelist!) and infuses the stories with medical expertise, while Nate Pedersen is a librarian and historian with a knack for telling history's darker tales.Quotes:“[A]n insightful look at human hubris in the story of would-be cures of all our ailments.” —NPR’s Science Friday “Much more than simply an overview of radioactive suppositories and mummy powder, Qua