Blood Matters

Blood Matters
Masha Gessen
Harcourt
ISBN: 9780151013623
Non-Fiction, Science, Personal Narrative
Reviewed by John R. Clark

Masha Gessen's Blood Matters is a real find; a book that both pulls you in, makes you part of the ride and educates you seamlessly. I had expected a somewhat challenging read, given the subject material. Instead, I found a highly personal story that combined cutting-edge genetic information with the author's personal odyssey through the frightening world of inherited cancer risk.
Gessen's writing is smooth and nicely visual in that I was able to 'see' most of the narrative like a movie in my imagination as I was reading. Most readers will discover they know far more than the average person about genetics, particularly who is studying which aspects and what they have uncovered, by the time they have finished the book. I found the section on using genetic selection to demonstrate specific breeds of animals-silver foxes, mink and wild rats, for example could be bred to be either extremely tame or very aggressive to be fascinating.
Likewise, her description of her double mastectomy from both the physical and psychological perspective were extremely visual for me as a reader, allowing her feelings during the entire process to be very clear.
This is a good book for those (individuals or libraries) who have an interest in health, cutting-edge science or a darn good narrative about how genetic information can completely change the way we look at our lives.