“Immersed in Verse,” by Allan Wolf

“Immersed in Verse,” by Allan Wolf is “an informative, slightly irreverent, and totally tremendous guide to living the poet's life.”

I enjoyed “Immersed in Verse.” This guide book takes the reader through all aspects of the poet's life. From the very start Allan Wolf establishes his humorous but still informative style with the “Stereotype Poet's Hall of Fame.” The seven main types of poets: classic poet, beat poet, angry poet, gothic poet, secret poet, hip-hop poet, and professor poet, made me laugh, but at the same time Wolf accurately conveys a broad scale picture of the poetry genre using this succinct device. After introducing the main types of poets, “Immersed in Verse” progresses to the different types of poetry. Twenty examples show the broad palette of subject matter and style that the poet can work with.

After introducing poets and poetry Allan Wolf starts on advice for new poets. He lists beneficial habits of highly successful poets and tools of the trade. After that he begins analyzing the anatomy of a poem. It is in this section that I found the single best feature of “Immersed in Verse”: the poem “Where I'm From” by George Ella Lyon. This amazing poem opened up a whole new area of inspiration in my mind.

Most of the things that Allan Wolf covers in “Immersed in Verse” are very simple ideas that I have already figured out over my own years of poetry experience. However, the book does contain a few amazing jewels that I had never thought of. For example page 72 highlights “Found Poems,” including one wonderful poem that Wolf himself created from a piece of a love letter that he found on the sidewalk outside of a middle school. The left and right sides of the letter were missing. Just the heart of it remained, but you can still tell the general drift of the letter. This idea struck me as very innovative with many applications. Wolf also discusses collaborative poems, including the “Exquisite Corpse Poem,” in which a group of people build a poem while knowing very little about what the other collaborators wrote. This technique creates a very “stream of consciousness” effect that captures the mood and minds of the group that created it.

I think that “Immersed in Verse,” by Allan Wolf is an excellent introduction to the poetry life. This book is suitable both for complete newbies with no experience writing poetry and seasoned poets in need of fresh inspiration. I recommend “Immersed in Verse” to all young people interested in poetry.

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“The Way We Work,” by David Macaulay

David Macaulay's “The Way We Work” is a unique, hand drawn biology textbook for young readers.

“The Way We Work” covers all aspects of the human body and the way its various structures and systems work. One of the things that most impressed me about the content of “The Way We Work” is that it covered virtually every aspect of many biology texts designed for much older readers.

“The Way We Work” begins with an explanation of how life works at its most basic levels, starting with the atom. After explaining the way atoms bind together, David Macaulay explains hows atoms form molecules and molecules in turn are the building blocks of cells. The detailed images of the inside of cells are very fascinating, and David Macaulay's illustration style adds a unique feel to the pages.

After explaining the basics of life “The Way We Work” moves on to the details of various body systems. Starting with the respiratory system, David Macaulay then moves through the digestive system, the nervous system, the immune system, the muscular and skeletal system, and finally the reproductive system.

I would recommend “The Way We Work” primarily for its pictures. David Macaulay's hand drawn images differ remarkably from the common fare of biology and anatomy books, and he includes humorous cartoons to keep things lively.

I think that “The Way We Work” by David Macaulay's is a good introductory text for children to learn about the human body.

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“Virus Hunter” by C. J. Peters

“Virus Hunter” by C. J. Peters is a thrilling autobiography about its author’s thirty year career fighting dangerous viruses around the world. The book was coauthored by Mark Olshaker.

The overwhelming theme of “Virus Hunter” is the need to be extremely careful when dealing with infectious diseases. C. J. Peter’s introduces an old medical adage: “Common things occur commonly. Uncommon things don’t. Therefore, when you hear hoofbeats, think horses, not zebras.” However, in the field of disease research and control you have to assume that the hoofbeats are those of zebras, or pay the penalty for underestimating the danger that could be present.

The very first chapter, entitled “The Killer Without a Name” sets the the pattern for the rest of the book. C. J. Peters does an amazing job of showing the tension, fear, and danger associated with virus outbreaks. First he shows what such an epidemic is like from point of view of someone living in the area:

One day you child, your parent, your spouse, or your lover—the person your cherish most in the world—is vigorous and healthy and full of life. Then he or she comes down the a headache, some fever and body aches, his or her chest feels heavy, breathing becomes labored. They complain of vague symptoms that get worse and worse. Sometime later, they collapse.

Twenty-four hours later, they’re dead.

Then C. J. Peters moves on to show the point of view of the medical community. The doctors discouraged by their apparent inability to keep their patients alive. In some cases they are overwhelmed by scores of sick people and others who are afraid that they might be sick. Then the disease starts killing nurses and doctors.

The hospitals themselves become dangerous places because they are filled with sick and dying people. The rest of the general populace sees the inadequacy of the hospitals and doctors and so they stop taking their relatives there, choosing instead to try to treat them at home.

Peters has worked in this kind of atmosphere for thirty years. He describes the way that he has had to deal with the press, doctors, and anguished patients. Since many such dangerous outbreaks occur in third world countries, C. J. Peters also describes the way the local economy and local culture affect the way the CDC and other research teams have to deal with people.

It is also highly dangerous to work in the research facilities that handle infectious diseases. C. J. Peters describes trying to save the life of a colleague who cuts himself with a scalpel while performing an autopsy. He shows healthy doctors who break down, sure that they have the disease themselves. Time and again, he demonstrates how even the most expensive high-tech research lab is only as safe as the procedures and attention to detail shown by the people who work in it.

“Virus Hunter” is extremely detailed, and its passages are both exciting and informative. This is an adult book, however. Not only does it include rather graphic medical descriptions of the effects of some diseases, but C. J. Peters makes occasional use of profanity. This language is the only thing that I regret about the presentation of “Virus Hunter.”

Overall, I would definitely recommend “Virus Hunter” as an exciting educational book on infectious disease.

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