The Big Necessity: The Unmentionable World of Human Waste and Why It Matters
This is a book about pooping. Not personally, but as a species. How we deal with our poop, around the world.
It’s what I call a “vignette book.” Over 10 or so chapters, the author tells disconnected stories that each explain some aspect of the story of poop.
Examples:
The World Toilet Conference and advances in toilet technology
The problem of open defection in India
How sewers work and are cleaned
The problems with public toilets
The health problems of poor sanitation
What happens to “biomass,” which is the sludge left over after sewage is treated
The book doesn’t build linearly, like a textbook. It jumps around, each chapter being some story or anecdote about the subject.
It’s well-written. It’s chapter is engaging and interesting, and author really has a nice style. She gets a little lyrical in places – this is absolutely not a dry, factual dissection of the topic.
But I would have liked something a little more linear and constructive. It took me until 3-4 chapters in before I figured out the format and that no chapter really related to the chapter before it. This is personal preference, I guess.
The book is unquestionably interesting, and it discusses something that few books (or people) really care to discuss. I know a little more than when I started it, and that’s the whole point, I guess.
Book Info
Author
Rose George
Year
Pages
238
Acquired
I have read this book. According to my records, I completed it on July 8, 2022.
A hardcover copy of this book is currently in my home library.
Here are some notes I took on the acquisition of this book: