The Cartoon Guide to Biology

The Cartoon Guides

by Larry Gonick, David Wessner

From New York Times bestselling author Larry Gonick and Davidson College biology professor David Wessner comes this comprehensive and humorous cartoon guide to topics in biology Did you faint when your middle school science teacher asked you to dissect a frog? Do you think DNA stands for “Don’t Know the Answer”? Do you still cling to the belief that osmosis was the name of Ozzy Osbourne’s last tour? If you said yes to any of these questions—or even if you didn’t—then you need The Cartoon Guide to Biology . The latest from New York Times bestselling author Larry Gonick—writing with Davidson College biology professor David Wessner—is a hilarious and informative handbook to the science of life. From the inner workings of the cell, to the magic of gene expression, to the Krebs and Calvin cycles, to sexual and asexual reproduction, The Cartoon Guide to Biology uses simple, clear, humorous illustrations to make biology’s most complex concepts understandable and entertaining. Whether you’re peering into the microscope for the first time or brushing up after decades of de-evolution, this book has you covered.  

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, Biology, Graphic Novels, Comics

320 pages, Paperback

Published July 30, 2019

About the author

Larry Gonick (born 1946) is a cartoonist best known for The Cartoon History of the Universe, a history of the world in comic book form, which he has been publishing in installments since 1977. He has also written The Cartoon History of the United States, and he has adapted the format for a series of co-written guidebooks on other subjects, beginning with The Cartoon Guide to Genetics in 1983. The diversity of his interests, and the success with which his books have met, have together earned Gonick the distinction of being "the most well-known and respected of cartoonists who have applied their craft to unravelling the mysteries of science" (Drug Discovery Today, March 2005).

Reviews

[Jiří Papoušek · Rating 5 out of 5]

I saw this book in the fantasy/comics section of the local bookstore. Since I like popular science books, have read history comics from the same artist as a child, and my girlfriend studies biology (which I don't know much about), I thought that I would give it a try. And how did it go?

The book carries more knowledge than I expected, and there is some heavy stuff to understand - especially in the first half of the book, which is about the chemical processes inside cells. Sometimes I spent a lot of time reading a few pages over and over to grasp the sequence of chemical reactions (although I admit its understanding was probably not necessary to get the message).

The second half of the book was significantly easier to read, included a lot of historical contexts and moved from abstract molecular things to the larger organisms we all recognize.

Overall good book; I am happy that I read it. However, I would say it definitely covers more concepts than what is taught at high schools (at least in my country) - and it may confuse some people who could at first glance think its target audience is children.

[Dakota Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Cartoon Guide to Biology is a fascinating, funny textbook. Larry Gonick's classic humor exists in spades, though it's sometimes covered up by David Wessner's biology knowledge. That's not a terrible thing: there's absolute loads to learn here. And it's pretty well arranged, building up from atoms to ecosystems.

But it's crazy dense, some sections almost impossible to parse. There's just so much terminology to take in, so much of it similar. Interons, enterons, exogens, ontogens, microgens - some of those are probably made up, but you get the idea. It's scientifically accurate, but hard to process unless you're actually a biology student. I mostly dug it as a huge nerd - the more casual reader might be intimidated.

[Luis Munoz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Larry Gonick se ha superado con la ayuda de Dave Wessner al entregarnos este material que, de entrada puede parecer poco serio, resulta ser un material denso, serio y difícil de tragar por momentos (hay que volver las páginas para tratar de entender algunas ideas). Abarca tanto en tan poco espacio que abruma, pero Gonick hace su mejor esfuerzo para graficar la exposición de Wessner sobre temas tan complejos como duplicación de ADN, regulación genética, ciclo de Krebs... vale la pena el esfuerzo.. El Cartoon Guide To Genetics del mismo Gonick se queda pequeño ante lo expuesto en este libro.

Por momentos se siente que se abarca demasiado, pero se agradece el esfuerzo.

[Anas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Setelah mencoba membaca Kartun Fisika dari komikus yang sama, saya jadi tertarik untuk menelusuri buku-bukunya yang lain dan diputuskanlah untuk membaca Kartun Biologi ini.
Pembahasan di buku ini sungguh membuka wawasan. Bahkan bagi saya yang selama SMA mengalami kesulitan di pelajaran Biologi buku ini cukup mudah dimengerti.
Pembahasan dimulai dari tingkat paling dasar, atom dan bagian-bagiannya, molekul, protein, sel, lalu skala pembahasannya makin besar hingga di skala bioma dan ekosistem.
Tentunya ada beberapa bagian yang saya tidak benar-benar paham, tapi tidak masalah. Kartun Biologi ini sudah cukup memberikan gambaran biologi secara umum, dan membuatnya menjadi lebih menyenangkan.

[Elodie B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

La biologie en BD résume une grosse parties des concepts de biologie pour mieux les comprendre ou les appréhender pour une première fois. C'est vraiment très bien rédigé, de manière ludique!
Ce livre qui m'a amené à mieux comprendre, de manière grossière, des concepts de biologie moléculaire. Bonne entrée en matière pour réviser un examen de biologie. Bien sûr ce n'est pas suffisant mais support intéressant dès 14 à 16 ans et bien après.

[Barbora Zapletalová · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tak jsem zkusila tuto knihu a doufala, že bude lepší než komiksová filozofie.. No, kresby mě tedy v té filozofii bavily daleko více, toto bylo pro mě takové nudné a ploché, bez obrázku by mi to přišlo téměř stejné. Kniha pokrývá mnoho témat, a občas se stalo, že jsem našla nějakou zajímavost, ale v podstatě mi spíš přišlo, jak kdybych četla nějaký jednoduchý výcuc maturitních otázek nebo tak. Moc mě to nebavilo.

[Logan Stecher · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was great and I wish I read it in middle/high school! It really serves to provide intros to many aspects of biology and may even help give direction of focus to students entering the field!

[Indah Threez Lestari · Rating 4 out of 5]

Akhirnya... buku Gonick yang belum aku punya...

Well, Biologi dimulai dengan Kimia. Dua-duanya mata pelajaran favoritku di sekolah.

[Rais · Rating 5 out of 5]

Karena saya suka biologi buku ini benar menarik dan menyenangkan