Publisher: Abrams ComicArts

Release Date: April 2, 2013

Price: $16.95

Creator: Darryl Cunningham

Format: 176 pgs., Limited Color, Hardcover

ISBN: 978-1-4197-0689-9

Age Rating: N/A

ICv2 Rating: 4 Stars out of 5

 

This non-fiction work is about the boundaries between science and belief, and all of the odd things which pop out of that boundary area.  Cunningham pokes holes in a variety of things, ranging from the arguments of those denying evolution or climate change, to the positions of those in favor of chiropractic or homeopathic medicine.  His side trips into fracking, the outright frauds of an anti-vaccination doctor, and the belief that the moon landings of the Apollo program were a hoax… all convincing, but a bit brief.  Longer chapters would permit a clearer explanation of some of the trickier scientific arguments he presents.  Still, his overall point is that science is not just a set of cobbled-together ideas or beliefs.  It's a set of verifiable concepts and principles, ones which stand up to being tested.  He makes a good point that people who put their own beliefs above the facts endanger not only themselves but others, such as in the areas of disease control and prevention.

 

The artwork is cartoony, which may distract some readers from the serious nature of the information presented.  Readers of works like Cartoon History of the Universe will have no problem with that part of it, and the book is readable by teens, if they’re interested in science.

 

--Nick Smith: Librarian Technician, Community Services, for the Pasadena Public Library in California.