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Immune

A Journey into the Mysterious System That Keeps You Alive

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Immune

By: Philipp Dettmer
Narrated by: Steve Taylor
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About this listen

**The instant Sunday Times and New York Times bestseller**

The book from the creator of the wildly popular science YouTube channel, KURZGESAGT - IN A NUTSHELL, a deep dive into the immune system that will change how you think about your body forever.
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'Fast-paced and full of wonder... Dettmer's book is the feast we've been waiting for.' SCIENCE

'Reads as if it's a riveting sci-fi novel . . . a delightful treat for the curious' TIM URBAN, creator of Wait But Why

You wake up and feel a tickle in your throat. Your head hurts. You're mildly annoyed as you get the kids ready for school and dress for work yourself. Meanwhile, an utterly epic war is being fought, just below your skin. Millions are fighting and dying for you to be able to complain as you drink your cup of tea and head out the door.

So what, exactly, IS your immune system?

Second only to the human brain in its complexity, it is one of the oldest and most critical facets of life on Earth. Without it, you would die within days. In Immune, Philipp Dettmer, the brains behind the most popular science channel on YouTube, takes readers on a journey through the fortress of the human body and its defences. There is a constant battle of staggering scale raging within us, full of stories of invasion, strategy, defeat, and noble self-sacrifice. In fact, in the time you've been reading this, your immune system has probably identified and eradicated a cancer cell that started to grow in your body.

Each chapter delves deeply into an element of the immune system, including defences like antibodies and inflammation as well as threats like viruses, bacteria, allergies and cancer, as Dettmer reveals why boosting your immune system is actually nonsense, how parasites sneak their way past your body's defences, how viruses - including the coronavirus - work, and what goes on in your wounds when you cut yourself.

Enlivened by engaging full-colour graphics and immersive descriptions, Immune turns one of the most intricate, interconnected, and confusing subjects - immunology - into a gripping adventure through an astonishing alien landscape.

Challenging what you know and think about your own body and how it defends you against all sorts of maladies and how it might also eventually be your own downfall, Immune is a vital and remarkably fun crash course in what is arguably, and increasingly, the most important system in the body.
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'A truly brilliant introduction to the human body's vast system for fighting infections and other threats'
JOHN GREEN, bestselling author of The Fault in Our Stars

©2021 Philipp Dettmer (P)2021 Hodder & Stoughton Limited
Biology Contagious Diseases Physical Illness & Disease Human Brain Thought-Provoking
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What listeners say about Immune

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Interesting and occasionally funny

The book was informative and well structured, moving along at an appropriate pace. The amount of information never felt overwhelming. It's a personal preference but I found the narration to be irritating for long periods of time - too monotone and robotic, it felt at odds with the text at times. I probably won't listen to this again and would be unlikely to listen to another audiobook with this narration, but it made me interested in the topic and I did finish the book so 4/5 seems right to me.

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Just brilliant!

Wonderfully written, beautifully read, I really enjoyed this title!! You don't have to be a scientist to follow the clever anecdotes and truly visualise the descriptions. Well done!

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    4 out of 5 stars

Worth hanging to be WOWED

For me I struggled initially with the narrator tone, but speeded it up and found that easier for me to digest. I’m glad I hung in there because I found the topic fascinating and often exclaimed “WOW”… and amused by the explanation, although “In a Nutshell” and “for Real’ are peppered through the narrative ….Mmh did eventually make me smile when I heard them !
In a Nutshell very interesting subject For Real 😜

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Absolutely brilliant

I am just a layperson but this book got recommended by Brianne Barker on the YouTube channel This Week in Virology, of which I am a massive fan.

The book is very easy to listen and written with humour, which kinda of breaks the cycles of brain overwhelm that I was experiencing at certain episodes in the book.

I am not promising that I have a comprehensive understanding of the immune system now but I have definitely got a massive respect now for what my cold-ravaged body is doing right now - and has done throughout my 48 years so far - to keep me alive.

It's answered a bunch of questions that I had about things like tattoos and fat storage and inflammation. Brilliant.

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This book is fantastic!

Explained the immune system in an easy to understand and memorable way. I especially enjoyed the part on bacterial infections comping it to a war between your body and the bacteria and your body cells as civilians. I will be reading this book again.

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Very Accessible and Fascinating

This book is so well written! I knew virtually nothing about the subject, before listening to this and now I learnt so much, with a lot being practically useful in how I look after my health. It never once becomes dry; in fact, many passages are downright exciting! Highly Recommended

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Very good and simple yo understand

It took me a while to finish but its very good and informative even for those that have zero knowledge for this subject.

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Incredibly informative

The book delivers vast amounts of information in a mostly clear, concise format. It was delivered with a good amount of humour, I really enjoyed & did learn a lot.

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A wonder of storytelling

While immunology is a topic a studied professionally, I turn to Kurtzgesagt when looking at an example of how complex subjects can be explained and talked about with ease. A majoroty of scientists are infamously bad at teaching the areas they research and are in desperate need of help to bridge the gap. This was a wonderful journey and review of our immune system and I would gladly listen to more.

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This book takes you to a new level of correctly understanding the immune system

The author manages to mediate a full story of the conplexity and adaptability of the fantastic immune system at a level perfect for a popular science audience.

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