The Secret Language of Anatomy

by Cecilia Brassett

The Secret Language of Anatomy is an initiation into the mysterious subject of anatomical terminology. Beautifully crafted illustrations uncover the close relationship between the parts of the human body and the evocative names given to them by anatomists. Decoding the body's secret language brings to life the history of anatomical terms, and explains why some words are used to describe very different organs and structures.
Complete with a guide to anatomical prefixes and suffixes, this book will appeal not only to medical students and practitioners, but also to readers interested in the history of anatomy, in the structure of the human body, and in medical etymology, as well as the history of language.
Publishing in time for Christmas and will be the ideal gift book for the growing market with interest in human anatomy, with titles such as Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers (Penguin) and Gut: The Inside Story of our Body's Most Under-rated Organ (Scribe) selling strongly over the past 12 months.

Genres: Medicine, Nonfiction, Science, Bodies, Reference

176 pages, Hardcover

Published September 1, 2017

Reviews

[Aatqa Arham · Rating 3 out of 5]

good for anatomy revision cheat days

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Attention Yoga Teachers and other curious beings who appreciate a good poetic exploration of the human body and word origin: this book is for you. 😍 New(ish) release discovered at the library but I’m going to buy it for future reference.

[Ardon · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very quick read which covers the etymology of a large number of anatomical terms. Incredibly succinct and packed with a number of illustrations to show readers the logic behind why the names for specific objects/natural structures became repurposed for certain components of the human body.

It was also a wonderful refresher of first year anatomy for me - I didn’t even realise I was capable of remembering some of these names!

The 5 star rating is in no way related to the fact that the author is also my boss at Magdalene College…

[Becky Hillary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was so fun to read. It is a short artistic explanation of Anatomical terms and the beauty of the language of anatomy. The images are separated in twenty sections as varied as agriculture, weaponry, animals, food and landscape- with history and entomology introductions in each section. It was a fun way to stop and appreciate language with context and the structure of our amazing selves in a new way.

[Stuart Cole · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good overview of anatomical terms, with clear explanations and elegantly simple drawings. Categorising terms - e.g. under tools or weaponry, or animals or plants, or ornaments, or numbers or letters, etc. is very effective in helping to remember terms. A great reference work, which will be useful in life drawing.

[Jaymee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting, but obviously lacking. Just a sampling of anatomical terms and their origins. I wish those that were given as examples in each chapter's introduction were just included in the chapter themselves. Some more info would've been appreciated too. A nice introduction to the wonderful language of our body parts.

[AcidOxidant · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite enjoyed it, nice gentle reading. Having studied and tutored anatomy at university, the vast majority of material was familiar to me. Didn't take long at all to read, it would be useful for first-time anatomy learners. Wouldn't rate it 5 stars but a well deserved 4.

[Louise · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was always going to love a book about anatomy and etymology!

Why did it sit partly read for a few years? No real explanation really. I'm glad that my end of year purge got me over the line finally.

[Alexis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pictures are very difficult to see on an ebook

[Jill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Word nerds and body nerds can meet within these pages. Charming, illuminating illustrations and concise descriptions of your favorite body parts (and maybe some you haven’t heard of yet).

[Terry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Basic anatomical Vocab from mostly Greek and Latin roots. Kinda fun.