The Microbes Within Us And a Grander View of Life
By Ed Yong
Available for purchase from Amazon
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Quick Take
The I Contain Multitudes book is at once a history book and a science book, charting the course of life on earth from the very beginning, and exploring the science behind our evolving understanding of the microbial world in which we live, delving deep into the manner in which these microbes shape that world, both around, and in us.
It is decidedly not a how-to book regarding your personal health, so readers looking for recipes or recommendations for medical conditions should look elsewhere (The Microbiome Solution would be a better bet for that)
However, it does provide a solid and useful foundation for your understanding of such issues and an appreciation for the importance and resourcefulness of these trillions of microorganisms with whom you share your body, and your world.
Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Stars
Well written, well documented, and well-rounded, I Contain Multitudes will provide you a top-level understanding of the critical role microorganisms play in all aspects of life on earth and will very likely change the way you look at the world and possibly even your place in it.
That said, I believe it could have used another cut at editing. This is a book, after all, that begins at the very dawn of life on earth and explains how bacteria themselves came to be.
There is, for example, an entire chapter on coral reefs, and while not wholly irrelevant, didn’t really add anything essential to a narrative that was already pretty lengthy (267 pages of small-type text in the paperback (357 including notes and bibliography), and nearly 10 hours for the audiobook) and seemed more like an add-on because the writer happened to have some extra material lying around.
I also thought the title, while a clever play on a Walt Whitman quote, suggested a book more focused on the human microbiome. Instead, well over half the book focuses its attention elsewhere.
Those minor nits aside, I felt it was well worth my time, and my understanding of the microbiome, human and otherwise, is much the richer for it.
Hype Meter
Written by Ed Yong, a science writer, who, while having an obvious passion for the subject, had no obvious personal agenda other than to bring you along on his journey of discovery. Meticulously documented with end notes, and with no grandiose claims of miracle cures but rather cautions regarding the still-early state of our understanding of the human microbiome, this book is essentially free from hype.
Clever Turns of Phrase
“(Antibiotics) kill the bacteria we want as well as those we don’t, an approach that’s like nuking a city to deal with a rat.”
“If your microbiome has fewer species than a hunter-gatherer’s is it dysbiotic (dyfunctional)? The term is great at conveying the ecological nature of disease but it’s also become microbiology’s version of art or pornography. You know it when you see it.”
Surprises
There is a flatworm that can regenerate severed body parts only because of the bacteria it harbors. The surprising consequence of this arrangement is that the bacteria-laden tail, if cut off, can regenerate a head, but the bacteria-free head, if cut off, can’t regenerate a tail.
After H. Pylori was determined to be the primary cause of ulcers and placed people at greater risk for stomach cancer, it was treated as a pure pathogen and has been the target of eradication efforts for decades. However, it has become clear that H. pylori also helps reduce acid reflux and the risk of esophageal cancer. And it doesn’t seem to matter which you choose, mortality rates are the same with or without H. pylori present.
Actionable Advice
While not a how-to book, there are some bits of actionable advice you can glean from this material. For example, the author notes that “saturated fats can nourish inflammatory microbes,” suggesting it is best to avoid such foods (I have started paying more attention to my intake of saturated fat having read this book).
The author also further supports the notion that when it comes to antibiotic use, we need to abandon the notion that there are no downsides, and instead carefully weigh the pros and cons.
However, the main benefit of this book for me was that it undeniably enriched my understanding of the overall microbial world, including the multitudes within us. I am more convinced than ever that we ignore our microbiome at our peril.
That doesn’t mean we should buy into every claim of a miracle cure, quite the opposite as the author explicitly points out. Instead, we can proceed with a combination of both caution and wonder at the power these vast communities of tiny but influential living things have on our lives.
Quick Note on The I Contain Multitudes Audiobook
There are some obvious and jarring edits you have to endure with the audiobook. They are not frequent, but occasionally the sound quality and tone changes in a way that makes it clear that the passage or phrase was recorded elsewhere at a different time and on different equipment. I was surprised this couldn’t have been cleaned up in post-production.
Otherwise, the narrator, Charlie Anson, is excellent. A classically trained theater actor who is also known for his work in Downtown Abbey among other productions, does a superb job of bringing the material to life. His pronunciation of certain words might sound unfamiliar to an American ear, but this in no way detracts from the reading, and in fact, adds a bit of novelty.
Before You Go…
Thanks so much for stopping by and spending some time with us. If you are interested in purchasing this book (available in most forms), you may do so here through Amazon (please see our Affiliate Disclosure for linking policies). Purchasing through this link doesn’t cost you anything additional, but doing so does help support the work we do here, and for that we are grateful.
If you have any questions, comments, or observations, please leave them in the comments below. And if you’ve read this book, please let us know what you got out of it, whether a surprise, a clever turn of phrase, or actionable advice!
Take care and we’ll see you next!
Jon
Wow, this information is very good for us. Thanks for sharing this helpful guideline of writing about this. I honestly would like to know more about this. I also thought it was only “about me” information. But I have learned many things to read this information. It helps us.Thanks for giving us such helpful Instruction.
You’re very welcome! Thanks for weighing in.
Hello Jon,
This has been a fascinating read for me, and now I feel like I’d like to know more about it and go ahead with the book, despite your comments about the editing. And I’m very pleased it has been marked as ‘safe’ on the hype meter! Love it. That being said though, is it an easy enough read for someone without a scientific background?
Thanks for your review Jon and I’m interested to explore the rest of your site.
Hi, Melissa, thank you!
And yes, it’s very accessible to anyone interested in the topic.
I hope you enjoy it!
Microbiome is one great idea that has eluded us for a long time. Now because it is hard to with us I think it would be fair to say each and every one should have this copy so that we are never left behind in the world of science and microbiology and all those other books that are within it. I always say say it is never too late to learn new things and learning is a cycle it never ends.
Hi Charles, thank you, and you are absolutely correct, it is never too late!
Hi! Thank you very much for writing this post. And doing this recommendation! I have always been interested in microorganisms and the role they play in our body and World.
Despite your comment with respect to the chapter about coral reefs, I have always felt interested in them so this will definitely add to what I expect from reading this book!
I like it’s free from hypes. You have awakened my curiosity for reading it. I’ll purchase this book!
It’s good knowing that bacteria can regenerate. I never knew about the regeneration of bacteria. But does the book give instances of the example of the bacteria that is responsible for such regeneration of other bacterium. I asked because I wonder how the head can be cut off and it will still regenerate the tail. I will like to know please.
As I understand it, it’s the bacteria that has the stored energy and gene mechanisms that allow it to reconstruct the creature’s missing part. Because the head has no bacteria, it simply has no means to rebuild.
I don’t recall the book identifying the specific bacteria but it is almost certainly a specialized symbiotic strain that co-evolved with the worm.
Hi, Henry, the section on coral reefs was absolutely fascinating, I think you’ll like it.
Thanks for stopping by!
Hello Jon,
You’ve done it again! Another great article while also doing a book review. I think you did an excellent job explaining I Contain Multitudes book. It sounds interesting.
I’m with you about the audio version. You would think they would’ve smoothed out the rough edges before publishing it. That sort of make a bad impression on the narrator, but at least he does a good job.
This sounds like a very interesting read. I may consider buying this book. I love learning about new things and this is a subject I know very little about.
Thanks for sharing!
Devara
Thank you, Devara, I appreciate that!
As I mentioned earlier, the book is very accessible, and I recommend the audio version as well in spite of the occasionally odd edit. It provides a great foundation for understanding the microbiome.
Wow very interesting information.I have always been facinated by the science of things and the learning about the earth from the very begining is very insightful, when it comes to understanding the mirobial world that we live in.I didn’t realize that antibiotics kil the bacteria we as well as those we don’t, that does make sense now. Just never really thought about it that way. It does not sound like a good idea to nuke a whole city to deal with a rat. We need to figure how to kill the rat without nuking the city at the same time. This is facinating information.
Hello Jon. I had no knowledge of the microbial world before this post. I am glad I found it and this site because I feel like I may have come across something I have been overlooking. Maybe in understanding things better I can gain insight into living a healthier lifestyle. I will be bookmarking your site and watching for further posts. Thanks.
This sounds incredibly interesting, I don’t have much knowledge on the microbial world but I definitely want to learn now! Will give this book a read for sure! Thanks for the breakdown.