The Human Body, an alien's guide by Leandro Cunha and Ruth Redford

 The Mayo Clinic has started publishing children's materials in comic format, simple introductions to mental and physical health. This title is an introduction to the human body, as seen through the eyes of two aliens.

The aliens, Zag and Zog, shrink down and enter the body of a brown-skinned child. They explore the digestive system, circulation, nervous system, brain, and functions of different blood cells. The book ends with a glossary and index. It's a fairly clear explanation and the narrative runs smoothly for the most part. At just under 50 pages it's a quick read and the text is simple enough for most readers to work through it, although they might need a little help with some of the blocks of nonfiction explanations.

I read this in galley format, and I assume the minor errors I saw will be corrected in the final version. For example, on page 5 it gives a normal body temperature in Fahrenheit, then labels a thermometer in Celsius. 98 is not a normal body temperature in Celsius lol. I was not completely happy with the font used - it's in capitals but the punctuation is hard to discern, and periods especially blend into the words themselves. There are some random questions that aren't answered, like page 29 where one alien asks about a "gurgling noise" in the digestive system but it's never addressed. The book generally sticks to the basic explanation of the systems without giving advice about health. It's available in a paperback or expensive library bound format.

I did find it a little odd that the reproductive system is not only not mentioned, it's completely blacked out on all diagrams. On page 37, when the urinary system is explained, the diagram appears to include a penis, but it's confusingly drawn. I understand that the creators were trying to make it accessible to young children and didn't want to explain the reproductive system, but I disagree with the choice to black out all those parts of the body.

Verdict: There are quite a few comic explorations of the body that include the concept of aliens, or shrinking down to explore the body, most notably Survive! Inside the Human Body, and this is a nice explanation for younger readers, perhaps with the help of an adult. I don't like the removal of the reproductive system, genitals, and any not mentioning any of the physical differences between the sexes, but I would accept it as a supplementary resource, especially for school libraries being scrutinized, censored, and harassed. This shouldn't be your only resource, but it's an acceptable addition to a collection of accurate information about the human body.

ISBN: 9798887701462; Published January 2024 by Mayo Press Clinic Kids; Galley provided for review by Smith Publicity