MU(T)AN(T)S by Armand Leroi
What?
Alright, let me begin by saying that this book is not about the X-Men or any other super heroes. It is far from anything like that. Then let me say that when looking at the cover of this book and reading the title you would possibly jump to the conclusion that Mr. Leroi should be hung for calling deformed people “mutants”. Truth be told I think I still stand by that.
Now, let me explain. I have no clue what I have just learned by reading this book. Of course I could possibly now recognize that CYP26AI is a gene but I didn’t need to know that, did you? Not to mention that I have no idea what it actually does. Same goes for the FGFR3 gene and the bone morphogenic protein (BMP). If you can explain these in layman’s terms please let me know and I will buy you a cup of coffee or seven while you explain.
I did learn… that there are actually are people covered in hair, have excessive bone development, diminished bone development, are short and tall (for the record I already knew that one), are born with “lobster claw” and that piebalding is real (look it up) among other things. Additionally, there is quite a bit of history regarding how people with deformities have been treated in the past, some as pets others as lab rats. And of course significant battles have been fought over the corpses of these people so that they could be dissected and have their bones put on display. I think the most important thing gathered from the book is that it’s not a good idea to sleep with someone in your family, but if you didn’t already know that, you’re screwed.
PS. Should you be blessed with red hair I urge you to skip pages 265 -268 for fear that you could be offended by statements such as “Children who have no melanotropins are not blonds, but redheads. And they are fat.” Or “… red hair is not good for anything at all.”
