Poison: A Social History

by Joel Levy

From Greek philosophers to former Russian spies, the use of poison as a means of ending a life - whether through assassination, murder, suicide, or execution - has a history stretching back over 2,000 years. Even before Socrates accepted his fate by drinking hemlock, countless people must have died as a result of ingesting naturally occurring poisons. And yet poisonous materials often also have beneficial hydrogen fluoride, for example, is highly toxic to humans, but is also a vital component in the production of herbicides, pharmaceuticals, and fluorescent light bulbs. " a Social History" explores the nature of toxicity and reveals how poison has played a crucial and often unheralded role - for good and for bad - in human history. As well as examining a range of poisonous materials, it also contains case studies of famous, and infamous, poisonings.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Science, Chemistry, Historical, Medicine, True Crime

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Joel Levy is a writer and journalist specializing in science and history. He is the author of over a dozen books, including The Little Book of Conspiracies and Scientific Feuds: From Galileo to the Human Genome Project. Phobiapedia is his first book for children.

Reviews

[RKanimalkingdom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Einstein once said that if you're unable to explain a concept to a 6 year old, then you don't know the concept yourself.

This book is the epitome of what Einstein said. Informative while still retaining the reader's attention, Poison introduces the world of toxicology on a far better level then most professors. It may seem harsh but I truly believe in Einstein's words. Levy has painted the world of poison in a way that is accessible to anyone regardless of their background. He doesn't skimp on the detail explanation or jargon yet he understands that he needs to properly explain what is happening on a chemical level to readers. It's amazing and deserves valor just for that.

I loved this book. I was entertained to the point of laughing out loud. I was curious and fascinated by how much I learned. Readers of this review............I TOOK NOTES ON THIS BOOK!

The book is broken into different segments and poison's involvement in each segment. Within each segment we cover infamous poisons such as cyanide, strychnine, barbiturates, and ricin. Many get their own spotlight which explain their history, how it works, symptoms, and treatments. You'd be shocked by how many we still have no cure for. Along with poison backdrop we also get historical information on how the poison was used in each segment. Notorious people known for using said poison are also given a spotlight.

Overall, this was a satisfying read and I highly recommend it. Like taking a bite out of an apple. Better be careful though, apple seeds contain cyanide! ;)

[Elentarri · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very pretty, but also very superficial, book about poisons. Chapter topics such as poison in nature, in history, as executioner, in murder, and as savior are given brief, general descriptions mixed with case studies and page-length profiles of some of the more notorious poisons. I found this book too superficial for my tastes, especially since I had previously come across nearly all of the information presented in this book, and usually in more detail. The book did, however, include a nice selection of colour paintings and illustrations.

[Nicky · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reviewed for The Bibliophibian.


I’ve been joking that my wife should be worried I picked this up, but really I was here to understand how poisons work. Although the ‘social history’ part of the title is definitely true, describing famous historical poisoning cases, it also includes little profiles on each poison which explain how it has the effects it has in chemical terms. I already knew some of the most notorious ones (partially because of the excellent book on Agatha Christie’s use of poisons, A is for Arsenic), but there were others I didn’t know.

Overall, it’s a bit shallow, focusing on some of the most sensational cases of poisoning and basically whipping around the types of poison that’re out there and how they’ve been used for suicide, assassination, etc. Still, it had its interesting points, and if you’re interested in true crime there’s a couple of cases I knew nothing about.

Not something to rush out and get, in my opinion, and while spouses should maybe be worried it’d put ideas into someone’s head, there’s no practical information about obtaining poisons or anything dangerous like that! It really is much more about the history, with explanations of how poisons actually do their damage.

[Katherine Addison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a beautifully designed book which talks about poisons from arsenic and snake venom to ricin and sarin. It's not terribly in-depth on any of them, but it does offer a panoramic overview from Cleopatra and Socrates to Alan Turing and Georgi Markov. Levy is an engaging writer, mostly light and deft--he missteps kind of horribly when talking about the assassination of Sarkov by a KGB agent wielding a pellet-shooting air-gun concealed in an umbrella (ammunition: jeweler's ball-bearings that contained ricin). Describing the umbrella as a "slaughterous sunshade" is, I'm sorry, over the top (134)--and very good at explaining how poisons work in a way that's simple enough for a layperson to follow but detailed enough for that same layperson to feel like s/he actually has a good understanding of what's happening, chemically speaking.

The beauty of the design does occasionally get in the way. Some of the font choices are hard to read, and, the sidebar pages offering profiles of the various poisons being printed on colored paper, some of the colors are too dark to easily read the text against.

So: good, but not great.

[Yj · Rating 3 out of 5]

By turns both interesting and boring.
Lots of information about the use of poisons throughout history both to help and harm humanity.
The saddest section was the part in Alan Turing who died of cyanide poisoning and while it was reported at the time as suicide, in actuality it was probably murder.

[Icy Sedgwick · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've long had a passing interest in toxicology, and I originally bought this book as a research tool for a fictional endeavour. It turns out that it's absolutely fascinating. Beginning with an explanation of what constitutes poison, and where it may be found (marine animals, plants, minerals etc.), the book then goes on to detail examples of poison in its different uses. Poison as Executioner, Assassin, Saviour and even Medicine are all covered. The author also includes flash pages of the more famous poisons, such as belladonna, strychnine and antimony, including the lethal dose required, any known antidote, where it is found and what its symptoms are, as well as famous victims.

It's incredibly up to date, as well as being interesting, and is interesting not only as a research tool for writers, it's also fascinating for its social history as well. On top of that, it's a very attractive book, with interesting typography and a tidy lay out. It also features coloured flash pages and beautiful illustrations or small photos of the victims and poisons in question.

[Lillian Carl]

A beautifully produced and designed book, with different colored pages for the details of common poisons, illustrations in both color and black-and-white of famous historical episodes, plants, and venomous animals (I had to squinch up my eyes and hurry past the tarantula), and handsome typography. All in the service of an often grim topic.

Levy covers poisons in science, nature, and history, and poisons as executioner, murderer, and assassin (yes, those categories run together), and poison used in suicide.

After two hundred pages or so of stories that will cost you your faith in humanity (for example: Nazis), Levy ends, thankfully, on poison as savior---the therapeutic uses of poisonous substances as anesthetics, painkillers, and so forth.

I suppose it says something about the mystery writer’s mind that I’d find a book of this nature enjoyable reading as well as informative!

[Martine Bailey · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a fascinating dip-in book, that took the reader through the gamut of the major poisons along with smart little anecdotes about their uses. Yes, it was macabre at times, but also genuinely interesting. My only gripe was that that it was necessarily superficial, given it's short length. The quote from Paracelsus that 'the dose makes the poison' ie that many substances, from water to common medicines, are poisonous in the wrong doses, will stay with me.

[Violetta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating topic, written with an ear for the drama as well as the science behind poisons, in all their forms. Remember, it's not inherent in "poisons" to be deadly, it's how the substances are used that makes the difference.

[Bill Powers · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a toxicologist, found Poison: An Illustrated History very informative and entertaining. It does not get bogged down in the weeds, but keeps the information at engaging level. I highly recommend - if you're into poison!

[Allanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great collection of information. Some pages (the ones with detail about poisons) are printed on colored pages, which makes it very difficult to read if the room isn't well-lit.
I especially liked the case histories.

[ines · Rating 5 out of 5]

Vrlo zanimljiva i poučna knjiga. Kako i sam naslov kaže u knjizi je proučavana povijest i uporaba otrova u ljudskoj povijesti. Od grka preko Katarine Medici do današnjih dana u knjizi se saznaje kako su ljudi koristili otrove ne samo u svrhe trovanja drugih već i u medicinske svrhe.

[dot · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice overview of poisons and their place in history that I liked well enough.

Note: I'm not a book reviewer.

[Lucija · Rating 3 out of 5]

Trebala bih pročitati u originalu jer je prijevod meh. Ali je knjiga jako poučna i zanimljiva.

[Cardamon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most informative and interesting. A very attractive book with beautiful illustrations and appealing cover.

My only gripe is that the font was, while visually pleasing when one is merely browsing the book, actually a bit unpleasant to read. Especially the ”infocard pages” on specific substances were not easy on the eyes with tiny writing against a darkly coloured backdrop. Might be a real issue for some people.

—————

Hyvin kiinnostava ja informatiivinen teos. Onnistunut kansi ja kaunis kuvitus.
Ainoastaan teokseen valittu fontti vaivasi. Teksti kyllä kirjaa selaillessa oli visuaalisesti viehättävä, mutta lukiessa rasitti silmiä. Erityisesti yksittäisiä myrkkyjä esittelevät infosivut olivat vaikealukuisia piikkiriikkisine teksteineen ja tummahkon värisine taustoineen. Joillekin lukijoille voi olla työn ja tuskan takana kahlata nämä yksittäiset sivut läpi.

[Grey Riedl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this book was very good as Levy both explains how a poison works and what cases was it famously used in. He also keeps a very professional tone through out the book, preferring to give facts rather then opinions on the cases in the book. Levy also describes how poison was used for medical purposes and not just death.

[Clint Putman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting overview of the use of poisons throughout history. The book covers scientific explanations of different poisons, while also exploring how poison has been used in mythology, literature and historical events.

[Amanda Adair · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is fun and visually pleasing. It gives more of a superficial history of poisons but contains some fun anecdotes that can be used as conversation starters (especially during spooky season). I got it at a used book store and have no regrets.

[M · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting delve in to the toxicity levels of typical and atypical poisons. Examples of their use throughout history make this a delightful read.

[Rudi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Goed boek , doet me afvragen of de wereld giftiger wordt ( voor Bv zoogdieren )

[Shishko · Rating 4 out of 5]

In some parts too complicated explanations how some poisons work. But very interesting book.

[Cathérine Deshayes · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a good start if you want to read more about Poisons. 3 stars because it fits a lot of information in very few pages, but sometimes the book lacks depth and is difficult to follow.

[Romana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Zanimljiva knjiga, ali i vrlo mučna na dijelove, jer ima puno povijesnih primjera sa slikovito opisanim učincima otrova.

[Stephanie Molnar · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting and comprehensive look at poisons, easily read by the average non-medical person.

[Kelley C · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book to be a really interesting read, filled with historical and scientific trivia. I'm not much of a history buff, so I hadn't heard of most of the stories presented in this book, and I feel like I learned a lot, both about history and the nature of poison. The book appears to have been deeply researched, with an extensive list of references in the back. My only complaint is that the text was riddled with typos--misspelled words, missing words, incorrect grammar. It wasn't enough that it made the book unreadable, but it was certainly enough to make me question whether the author had any kind of editor. Overall, a fun and interesting read.

[Meander · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a really great overview of poisons, both in telling great stories of poisonings, as well as giving some technical information on the effects of several poisons. My favorite part though was probably where they were discussing the puffer fish and its use in "zombification" according to Vodoo religions.

[David Szatkowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

An insightful book that looks at not only the history of poison, but also how poisons can also be cures. An easy read that lends itself to the beach, the armchair, or casual reading where ever you may want a book.

[Marie-eve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amusant

[Jackie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, perhaps somewhat macabre entertainment but essential reading for murder mystery fans. And it is a lovely book (well, as lovely as a book about poison can be....)

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

While it's not terribly written, the prose is certainly wanting of sine literary merits and makes an otherwise fascinating topic extremely dry and at times dull.