The remarkable life of the skin

How does human skin work?

The skin is the largest and fastest-growing organ in the human body. We look at it, touch it, and live in it every day. It's home to an incredibly complex world of microorganisms. It removes waste products from the body, alerts us to diseases deeper within the body, and serves as a dynamic immune barrier against infections. And besides fulfilling many physiological functions essential for our health and survival, the skin also has an irreplaceable social role—it is fundamental to the perception of human identity. Yet, we still don't know much about the skin and its remarkable ways of functioning.

Monty Lyman invites you on a journey through our most underappreciated and unexplored organ from the perspectives of science, sociology, and history, showing that the skin is much stranger, more miraculous, and more complex than we can imagine.

This book is more than just a collection of interesting case studies and fascinating facts—although those are present too. It covers a range of fields from basic research to the social sciences and describes the various roles the skin plays. What's more, the author writes in an accessible way and doesn't get bogged down in excessive jargon.
— Kirkus Reviews

In his fascinating book, Monty Lyman summarises scientific knowledge and surprising facts about human skin.
— Nature