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DirtyBiology. La grande aventure du sexe
Saviez-vous que sur notre planète, certaines espèces ne font pas de sexe ? Qu'il existe une incroyable diversité de formes d'organes reproducteurs et que biologiquement, on peut faire du sexe sans sexes ? Des rites amoureux les plus improbables, à l'invention des mâles et femelles, en passant par le pseudo-sexe des bactéries et la sexualité des champignons : vous ne verrez plus le monde vivant du même oeil.
186 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 2, 2017
2 people are currently reading
150 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
January 21, 2025
Dirty Biology is both an evolutionary exploration and a tour of different kinds of sexual reproduction among species. It may seem like there isn’t that much to say on this topic. However, author Léo Grasset covered a wide array of life-forms, from bacteria to slipper shell mollusks (aka “fornicating slipper snails”) to fig trees to alligators, and the bottom line is that the sexual reproduction of living things is almost as varied as the creatures themselves. Some reproduction is ordinary to the point of boring, but a lot is really weird, and some is downright unsettling.
This is book is dense with explanation, and Colas Grasset’s illustrations (in jest called a “drunk artist’s rendering,” which is totally inaccurate) are both humorous and helpful. To keep interest piqued, the author set this up as a lively narrator (humanoid, nude, and—ironically—sex-less) taking the reader on an educational journey. This set-up works; however, the occasional awkwardness of the French-to-English translation comes through when the innocent-looking narrator utters crude slang, and some of the jokes in this book don’t land.
In writing about gametes and chromosomes, Grasset delved a bit more than was necessary for the casual reader, but this is mostly about the concrete. Dirty Biology effectively presents complex science—which isn’t surprising; Grasset has an entertaining French-language YouTube channel also titled “DirtyBiology.” In addition to promoting that channel at the end, he included a short list of reading suggestions about animal reproduction. As long and thorough as this sequential-art nonfiction is, it covers a tiny fraction of all there is to know.
This is book is dense with explanation, and Colas Grasset’s illustrations (in jest called a “drunk artist’s rendering,” which is totally inaccurate) are both humorous and helpful. To keep interest piqued, the author set this up as a lively narrator (humanoid, nude, and—ironically—sex-less) taking the reader on an educational journey. This set-up works; however, the occasional awkwardness of the French-to-English translation comes through when the innocent-looking narrator utters crude slang, and some of the jokes in this book don’t land.
In writing about gametes and chromosomes, Grasset delved a bit more than was necessary for the casual reader, but this is mostly about the concrete. Dirty Biology effectively presents complex science—which isn’t surprising; Grasset has an entertaining French-language YouTube channel also titled “DirtyBiology.” In addition to promoting that channel at the end, he included a short list of reading suggestions about animal reproduction. As long and thorough as this sequential-art nonfiction is, it covers a tiny fraction of all there is to know.
July 7, 2018
Ça se lit vite, c’est fun et je crois que je ne regarderais plus les figues de la même manière!
Une bonne vulgarisation scientifique, à la portée du plus grand nombre et bien plus marrant que les cours de bio!
Une bonne vulgarisation scientifique, à la portée du plus grand nombre et bien plus marrant que les cours de bio!
March 4, 2018
Une BD à lire, très ludique et drôle sur l'évolution du sexe depuis des milliards d'années.
On en apprend bcp dans cette BD, pas sur l'homme, mais sur les animaux et les plantes et les différentes façons de se reproduire, qui n'implique pas toujours un acte sexuel.
Je recommande cette BD très instructive.
On en apprend bcp dans cette BD, pas sur l'homme, mais sur les animaux et les plantes et les différentes façons de se reproduire, qui n'implique pas toujours un acte sexuel.
Je recommande cette BD très instructive.
June 2, 2018
17/20 : Avec des dessins agréables et des explications simples mais scientifiques, Léo Grasset le youtubeur de la chaine DirtyBiologie arrive à nous apprendre des choses franchement très étonnantes à propos de la reproduction chez certaines animales. C'est une BD que je recommande car elle est très plaisante à lire et bourrée d'humour. Il faut préciser que c'est le frère de Léo qui s'est chargé des dessins de cette BD.
May 10, 2021
I RECEIVED THIS AS AN ARC. ALL OPINIONS ARE MY OWN.
Dirty Biology is a lightly comedic, graphic novel approach to the history, evolution, and biology of sex. Grasset focuses on the biological and evolutionary purposes of sex, primarily throughout the animal kingdom - as opposed to the emotional or relational reasons of just humans having sex (though those are very very briefly touched on as well).
The art style trends toward Adventure Time mixed with Rick and Morty. Most of the novel is fairly tame, but there is occasional lewdness in the imagery, particularly at the beginning. Dirty Biology is NOT meant to be a tool for educating children.
The writing style is mostly educational with humor sprinkled throughout almost every page. The humor is mostly light and while there are plenty of obvious dirty jokes that can be made, Dirty Biology mostly takes the educational stance and keeps the jokes on the cleaner side about 90% of the time. The approach is to make understanding sex from a biological viewpoint accessible, and that is certainly accomplished. While there is plenty of science jargon used, it is either explained explicitly or quickly contextually understandable. The narrative is given by a single humanoid character (with a brief interlude from another humanoid character) in a fun, lecture style that makes the subject even more approachable.
While I personally am not a fan of the style of humor chosen or the lewd imagery, I am a fan of the approach to the inquiry of sex from a biological standpoint. I appreciated reading a more scientific approach (as opposed to psychological or relational) to why and how sex exists across so many different species. Though the book was largely a broad overview, I also feel like I've gotten a decent baseline understanding of biological sexual activity if I wanted to continue pursuing the subject matter, while also having read enough about it that if this was the only book I ever read about the topic I wouldn't feel like I've missed important information.
Dirty Biology is a lightly comedic, graphic novel approach to the history, evolution, and biology of sex. Grasset focuses on the biological and evolutionary purposes of sex, primarily throughout the animal kingdom - as opposed to the emotional or relational reasons of just humans having sex (though those are very very briefly touched on as well).
The art style trends toward Adventure Time mixed with Rick and Morty. Most of the novel is fairly tame, but there is occasional lewdness in the imagery, particularly at the beginning. Dirty Biology is NOT meant to be a tool for educating children.
The writing style is mostly educational with humor sprinkled throughout almost every page. The humor is mostly light and while there are plenty of obvious dirty jokes that can be made, Dirty Biology mostly takes the educational stance and keeps the jokes on the cleaner side about 90% of the time. The approach is to make understanding sex from a biological viewpoint accessible, and that is certainly accomplished. While there is plenty of science jargon used, it is either explained explicitly or quickly contextually understandable. The narrative is given by a single humanoid character (with a brief interlude from another humanoid character) in a fun, lecture style that makes the subject even more approachable.
While I personally am not a fan of the style of humor chosen or the lewd imagery, I am a fan of the approach to the inquiry of sex from a biological standpoint. I appreciated reading a more scientific approach (as opposed to psychological or relational) to why and how sex exists across so many different species. Though the book was largely a broad overview, I also feel like I've gotten a decent baseline understanding of biological sexual activity if I wanted to continue pursuing the subject matter, while also having read enough about it that if this was the only book I ever read about the topic I wouldn't feel like I've missed important information.
July 15, 2021
Dirty Biology: The X-Rated Story of Sex (Paperback)
by Léo Grasset
from the library
ordered from the library today
http://ijoca.blogspot.com/2021/05/boo...
Thursday, May 13, 2021
Book Review: Dirty Biology: The X-Rated Story of the Science of Sex
Dirty Biology: The X-Rated Story of the Science of Sex. Léo Grasset (scripter) and Colas Grasset (artist), translated from French by Kendra Boileau. University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2021. 192 pp. $24.95. https://www.graphicmundi.org/books/97...
reviewed by Laura Sayre
Of zizis and zézettes: Teaching evolutionary biology through sex
Dirty Biology: The X-Rated Story of the Science of Sex, by Léo and Colas Grasset (originally published as DirtyBiology: La grande aventure du sexe, Éditions Delcourt, 2017), is a full-length graphic novel that offers a detailed account, not just of the evolutionary history of animal copulation -- as might appear at first glance -- but rather of the various means by which genetic exchange and reproduction are accomplished by biological organisms, from bacteria to fish to elephants. The authors’ gamble is that the topic’s potential for crude humor, particularly in the graphic format, will contribute to, rather than detract from, its objective of delivering serious ideas about the workings of evolutionary biology. The extent to which that gamble pays off will depend on your sense of humor. Nevertheless, this is a smart book that successfully conveys its creators’ wide-ranging, iconoclastic appreciation for the unimaginable variety of life on earth. more
by Léo Grasset
from the library
ordered from the library today
http://ijoca.blogspot.com/2021/05/boo...
Thursday, May 13, 2021
Book Review: Dirty Biology: The X-Rated Story of the Science of Sex
Dirty Biology: The X-Rated Story of the Science of Sex. Léo Grasset (scripter) and Colas Grasset (artist), translated from French by Kendra Boileau. University Park, PA: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2021. 192 pp. $24.95. https://www.graphicmundi.org/books/97...
reviewed by Laura Sayre
Of zizis and zézettes: Teaching evolutionary biology through sex
Dirty Biology: The X-Rated Story of the Science of Sex, by Léo and Colas Grasset (originally published as DirtyBiology: La grande aventure du sexe, Éditions Delcourt, 2017), is a full-length graphic novel that offers a detailed account, not just of the evolutionary history of animal copulation -- as might appear at first glance -- but rather of the various means by which genetic exchange and reproduction are accomplished by biological organisms, from bacteria to fish to elephants. The authors’ gamble is that the topic’s potential for crude humor, particularly in the graphic format, will contribute to, rather than detract from, its objective of delivering serious ideas about the workings of evolutionary biology. The extent to which that gamble pays off will depend on your sense of humor. Nevertheless, this is a smart book that successfully conveys its creators’ wide-ranging, iconoclastic appreciation for the unimaginable variety of life on earth. more
September 15, 2021
An interesting and mildly humorous look at how sex evolved as an evolutionary process. I have read other books on adjacent topics—more on the social aspects/rules of human sexual behavior and gender expression—this book instead covers why creatures use sex to reproduce at all. It gives many examples of those species who don’t use sexual reproduction to multiply and why certain methods of reproduction developed over others.
While this book is more focused on biology of various species and what accounts for all the variations—from hermaphrodite snails to clownfish who change genders to fungi with 28,000 different genders—I think books like this help people to understand and empathize with the LGBT+ communities, polyamorous groupings, etc. After all, reproduction methods are frequently evolving, extremely varied, and have various advantages and disadvantages from an evolutionary standpoint.
While this book is more focused on biology of various species and what accounts for all the variations—from hermaphrodite snails to clownfish who change genders to fungi with 28,000 different genders—I think books like this help people to understand and empathize with the LGBT+ communities, polyamorous groupings, etc. After all, reproduction methods are frequently evolving, extremely varied, and have various advantages and disadvantages from an evolutionary standpoint.
September 12, 2021
An entertaining graphic novel that walks through the weird world of biology/sex on our planet. It does a great job introducing complex concepts, but doesn't quite spend enough time on any one example to be all that satisfying. If felt like there were rocks left unturned, which I very much wanted to peek under.
September 26, 2021
Amusing and educational! A lot of the content I learned from school and David Attenborough documentaries, but still picked up an interesting fact or two. Certainly didn't know about the ancient dude trees in the desert!
October 21, 2021
Raunchy, hilarious, and informative. Everything you want to know about sex, covering all sorts of life from microbes to mammals. I thought I knew a decent bit about the biology of sexual reproduction but this graphic novel surprised me with scads of fascinating and strange facts.
January 10, 2022
A great introductory to the science of sex, but I was confused by the initial premise. I thought this was going to be WAY more about human sex and sexuality. If you are interested in a starter guide to the evolution of sex in animals (and humans a little), then this is a good and quick read.
March 11, 2023
Une BD pleine d'humour qui explique les différents mécanismes de reproduction qui existent dans le vivant. La diversité des stratégie, dont on n'aura au final qu'un petit aperçu, est impressionnante. On apprend en riant !
August 22, 2025
This comic was as interesting as it is gross, and it also got progressively more bizarre the more you read. There IS good information, but I didn’t particularly love the art style or the storyline.
2.5 stars
2.5 stars
January 2, 2018
super 👍👍
April 26, 2020
La science est intéressante mais l'humour fait grincer. C'est plutôt juvénile comme humour mais je supose que c'est l'auditoire visé.
Want to read
May 3, 2021Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.
June 22, 2021
A cute pop-sci read!
February 23, 2022
Très intéressant avec beaucoup d’informations ! Ça reste une lecture rapide.
Gros plus pour les illustrations qui sont géniales.
Gros plus pour les illustrations qui sont géniales.
July 5, 2022
Lots of information, i'm not sure i will remember all of that, but it's very interesting and told in a funny and playful way.
August 7, 2022
I thought it was really fun! A good mix of things I already knew with some interesting new tidbits too.
August 31, 2022
Hilarious and educational 😁
September 21, 2022
This book was just plain boring. I expected to learn some cool new facts, but there’s nothing in this book that wasn’t covered in my college Biology 101 course.
January 5, 2023
Très intéressant avec plein d'anecdotes sur la reproduction bizarre d'animaux, avec beaucoup d'humour !
June 23, 2023
Enlightening.
February 18, 2024
Très amusant et dynamique, on apprend plein de choses
August 26, 2020
Actually, this book was pretty fun and I learned a lot of stuff.
Stuff I didn't need but now... like... did you know that some female rodents can abort on their own when an unknown male comes/arrives?
Now you know.
Stuff I didn't need but now... like... did you know that some female rodents can abort on their own when an unknown male comes/arrives?
Now you know.
January 26, 2018
Très bonne vulgarisation de la reproduction chez les êtres vivants, c'est très intéressant et très accessible, avec des petites touches d'humour. Les dessins ne sont pas fous niveau détail mais assez expressif. Et à travers cette BD on entrevoit un peu la grand diversité des espèces vivantes c'est fou!
Read
June 3, 2018Je ne savais pas trop à quoi m'attendre de ce lire, qui m'a attiré parce que j'avais vu quelques vidéos de dirtybiology. Mais finalement, c'est un genre de livre que j'adore. Un livre qui nous permet d'apprendre un tas de fait étonnants, sur un ton léger mais sans nous prendre pour des idiots.
Les dessins sont simple et complémentent bien le sujet.
A lire si vous aimez les animaux! et si vous aimez apprendre tout simplement.
Les dessins sont simple et complémentent bien le sujet.
A lire si vous aimez les animaux! et si vous aimez apprendre tout simplement.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews