26.) Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science by John Fleischman

"It will kill him, but it will take another eleven years, six months, and nineteen days to do so."

Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story About Brain Science by John Fleischman (Sandpiper, 2004)

Genre: Non-Fiction, Science, Anatomy

Honors: Rebecca Caudill Young Reader's Book Award Nominee (2005) [Honors Information found at Goodreads.com]

Review: When Phineas was 19 he worked in a mine with explosives. In a freak accident the spear like tool that he used with packing the gun powder shot through his skull. He returned to work just weeks later, but was not the same person. Phineas lived for another 11 years. His case became a text book study for the study of the brain. This book goes into detail about how far science has come in brain research. 

Opinion: I was a little worried when I went to the juvenile section to check this book out, I was afraid that it would be too young for teens. In reality it's just the size of the book that makes it look too young. It's almost a picture book size, so I can't imagine a teen wanting to read it because it would look like they were reading a children's picture book. I think they should make a smaller version and release it for teens. 

Ideas: This book has great information about science, the history of science, and anatomy. This would be a good book for anyone interested in non-fiction because it's a very interesting story that is not bogged down with medical terms, and if there are medical terms they are explained. It's pretty gruesome, but pretty cool all the same.