William Atkins
Saturday, 08 November 2008 21:31
Science -
Biology
Page 2 of 3
Obviously, the book is not for the timid nor the faint of heart.
Your 95 year-old maiden aunt may faint at the mere title and subtitle of the book: “The Big Necessity: The Unmentionable World of Human Waste and Why It Matters.”
However, the book is filled with many historical references to the technological advances made in the field of human excrement.
Such names as British inventor Thomas Crapper, British engineer Joseph Baazalgette (savior from “The Big Stink”), Chinese gangster known as "The Shit Queen," and South African Bindeshwar Pathak (“minister of toilets”) appear in the book, along with a complete story on how each added to the world of toilets.
Another review of the book, by
Henry Holt and Company of Macmillan Publishers, states that the book is,
“An utterly original exploration of the world of human waste that will surprise, outrage—and entertain.”
The review continues,
“The Big Necessity takes aim at the taboo, revealing everything that matters about how people do—and don’t—deal with their own waste. Moving from the deep underground sewers of Paris, London, and New York—an infrastructure disaster waiting to happen—to an Indian slum where ten toilets are shared by 60,000 people….”
Page three concludes with comments from these two reviews, along with excerpts from the book.
