Alexander, Lori. What’s a Germ, Joseph Lister?: The Medical Mystery That Forever Changed the Way We Heal. Daniel Duncan, Illus. Clarion, 10/2023. 144pp. Nonfiction. Trade $19.99. 978-0-3585-3817-2. GRADES 5–7. OUTSTANDING.
Bloody and butchering was how Joseph Lister described his job as a surgeon, and in the 1860s, he wasn’t wrong. But Lister’s discoveries and innovations transformed hospitals from “houses of death” to places where patients’ chances of recovery actually increased. Clear prose, dramatic framing, and plenty of gruesome details engage readers and open eyes to the perils of the past and how one person’s dogged scientific inquiry saved millions of lives. Review based on an ARC; illustrations unavailable.
Melissa McAvoy—Retired