Waist-Deep in Dung: A Stomach-Churning Look at the Grossest Jobs Throughout History

by Christine Virnig, Korwin Briggs (Illustrator)

Overview

A hilarious illustrated middle-grade nonfiction offering about the most revolting jobs throughout history involving pee, poop, vomit, dead bodies, and all things disgusting, from Christine Virnig and Korwin Briggs, the author-illustrator team behind SCBWI Golden Kite Finalist Dung for Dinner.

What did the ancient Egyptian embalmer say when he was feeling sad? I want my mummy!

After wading into the grossest animal pee, poop, and vomit humans have consumed in Dung for Dinner, Dr. Virnig dives back into the muck with an equally humorous and informative exploration of the most revolting jobs throughout history in Waist-Deep in Dung.

From the ancient Egyptian mummy makers who removed brains by shoving iron hooks up peoples’ noses, to the 19th century Toshers who hunted for treasure deep in the London sewers, to modern day forensic entomologists who study the fly eggs, maggots, and other creepy crawlies that live on—and crawl through—human corpses, we'll learn about jobs that deal with poop, pee, blood, medicine, and dead bodies.

Combining history, science, and a slew of fascinating facts, it’s middle grade nonfiction with real kid appeal. Art from Korwin Briggs will make readers laugh out loud!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250762351
Publisher:	Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)
Publication date:	03/12/2024
Series:	Dung for Dinner , #2
Pages:	224
Sales rank:	781,838
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.59(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Christine Virnig is the author of Dung for Dinner. Christine is a pediatric physician specializing in allergies; she gets to talk about topics that most adults find downright repulsive, like phlegm, snot, and dust mite poo. She lives in Madison, Wisconsin, with her husband, two children, and two hairball producers.

Korwin Briggs is a writer and illustrator who makes comics, infographics, and books about academic stuff like history and science. He’s the author of Gods and Heroes: Mythology Around the World, The Invention Hunters Discover How Machines Work, and The Invention Hunters Discover How Electricity Works.

Editorial Reviews

2023-12-16
What’s the worst possible job you can imagine?

The team that brought you Dung for Dinner (2020) follows up with a similarly gross look at unpleasant but often necessary occupations. Throughout history, some have been tasked with dealing with blood, sickness, death, vomit, pee, and poop, not just as parents or family members but as lifelong jobs. In this roundup, Virnig addresses readers directly; her playful prose centers on the gritty and gross details. Each of the 16 chapters covers a different specialty, including ancient Egyptian mummy makers, leech collectors, barber-surgeons, forensic entomologists, modern-day medical caretakers, and people who excavate, dissect, and watch over bodies to confirm that death has occurred. She describes an ancient Roman banquet as a “puke party” that someone has to clean up, which gives her the opportunity to talk about slavery in that society. Her chatty narrative is especially sympathetic to the people who collect poop: gongfermors in the Middle Ages, saltpeter men who extracted a vital ingredient for gunpowder from outhouses in the 17th century, toshers who roamed Victorian London sewers, Chinese laborers who harvested guano in Peru in the 19th century, and Dalit scavengers in present-day India. Briggs’ humorous sepia cartoon illustrations, often of people doing their jobs, add to the appeal. Full of the eww factor, the selection and presentation here are sure to engage readers.

Appealingly and disgustingly informative. (bibliography) (Nonfiction. 8-12)

Kirkus Reviews