The Invisible East is a story told on the scale of a murder in WWI and the cane of the microbe that invade the body and cause dysentery.
I have read many graphic novels and the story and art in this story are simple yet effective. The thing that makes it better are the "footnote" details at the end. In fact, in the ebook version I read, the footnotes were longer than the book itself but contained great history and science info that described the whys and wherefores of the story itself.
If you enjoy science and history, this graphic novel is a great read for you.

I thought this was really very good, and an interesting perspective on war and disease, Unfortunately the preview format on the Kindle app on the iPad makes it very difficult to see the footnotes and asides as you are reading, so I feel I missed a significant portion of this book. Nonetheless, pretty good.

This was an interesting way to cover two important topics in an interesting context of war. Although it feels more like a more engaging way to address educational topics a learning environment than a recreational read.

The Invisible War is a cute graphic novel that discusses two very un-cuted topics: World War I and gut microbes. Both can be pretty disgusting (and dry topics if the author doesn't write about it correctly) but this book is an interesting look at both topics that is suitable for young teens and older.

The story shows us how dysentery is spread from an ill patient to a healthy individual through a fly as a host. It shows us how the new individual is infected, then allows us to see how her gut is invaded and tries to fight off the bacteria. Dysentery was a deadly disease in the early 1900s and before; I won't spoil it by telling you what happens to the lady who caught it.

At the same time, The Invisible War also shows us a view of what it was like to work in a hospital during World War I. What was it like to see all these patients coming in? What kind of injuries were they treating? What sort of things were they discussing? This story gives us a peek into the lives of ordinary people who were helping in the war.

By no means will The Invisible War make you an expert on either World War I or gut microbes like dysentery, but this story is an interesting introduction to both. I recommend this graphic novel to students in junior high and high school, as well as adults who just want a fun read about the topic. It would be great for homeschool students!

This wonderful, informative, enjoyable graphic novel explores contribution of nurses in treating world war1 injurrd soldiers and how reserarch by sister William helped discover treatment of bacillary dysentery.
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Book is set in British casuality removal camp in France and describes in great detail how Shiga enters human body and creates life threatening dysentery.
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Book has lots if information about dusease, human physiology, gut microbes, human gut physiology and atricities of war. It underlines how bacteriology evolved and role of hygiene was discovered.
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A lot if new things about our gut bacteria and bacteriophages.
.It also tells few interesting facts about world war 1.
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Art is wonderful and simple on eyes and brain.
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Very nice educational graphic novel.

Nestled within a war-torn story line, superb drawings made for an entertaining read. The narrative was closely accompanied with an unyielding plot that screamed of the ravages of war. A medical facility located close to the front that received the first wounded was known as a Casualty Clearing Station. It saved many a life.

During World War 1, the Western Front in France set the stage for this nightmarish graphic novel. Deadly threats other than bullets, bombs and bayonets loomed over the desperate soldiers in the battlefield. Stepping onto Center Stage the unseen disease of dysentery took its deadly toll.

In layman's terms, the debilitating disease was meticulously drawn out as it scavenged its way through the alimentary canal. Every twist and turn in the tortured gut was depicted in detail. Healthy individuals had a fighting chance of surviving that disease-ridden battle. Those not so fortunate succumbed to its unrelenting advances.

I extend my thanks to NetGalley and Scale Free Network for this ARC in exchange for an unbiased review.

This was an interesting read and definitely not what I was first expecting. I was gearing up for a historical piece on maybe the first or second world war, but what I wasn't expecting was to be educated on the science behind our gut and gut bacteria. I enjoyed the way the author made a confusing topic relatively easy to understand for those of us who haven't studied in this area, especially with the 'war' between the good and bad bacteria in our gut.

I can't imagine how difficult this would have been for people to deal with such complicated issues decades ago, let alone during a war. It would have been extremely confusing and scary for those suffering. I know from having many gut issues myself that it can be an all-encompassing issue and definitely life-altering at the time.

While this graphic novel wasn't at all what I was expecting when I saw the front cover, I quite enjoyed it and the science lesson it provided me. It even made me want to go and grab some probiotics to helps the good guys 'fight' in my gut!

This is an educational graphic novel on how dysentery spreads, the body's response to the disease and the role of good bacteria/virus in fighting the disease. The story is set in WW1 France where the nurses and doctors battle everyday to save the lives of soldiers defending the frontline. It's interesting to note that this story takes place before the invention of antibiotics, so much of the focus is on how the body itself fights the disease. An explanation of some of the terms is covered in more detail in the appendix section which is linked to relevant panels of the images.

I found the book quite engaging and the simple clean illustrations didn't distract from the experience in any way. I liked that the communication between the bacteria and viruses are presented to us in an interactive form with the cells "talking" to each other and to the reader. It is certainly better than reading a straight up article or book for those not inclined to read up on a lot of science. I'd recommend it to anyone who wants to learn more about the topic and wants to digest the information in an easy to understand format.

*I've had a pleasure to read this book thanks to NetGalley*
This book, ladies and gents, is a really good one! Well, it's a graphic novel, actually. Anyway, it tells an amazing story of a young nurse during a WWI, who is fighting on two fronts - one is helping soldiers, who got hurt and the other is a fight with her organism. This novel shows the internal fight of the organism in a truly amazing way. I love how it is both easy to understand and very educational. I love the setting and the black and white drawings. It's truly beautiful.

An interesting graphic novel with black and white illustrations. Set in the WWI era, the story centers on Sister Annie, a nurse who gets infected while treating a patient with dysentery. The story follows the bacteria as they course through her body.
This book is an interesting blend of history and science. It is quite informative and provides important insights into WWI and the horrors of dysentery. The second part of the book contains further explanations of the diseases, including mental and emotional trauma some soldiers experienced. It also contains black and white images and some interesting facts about WWI. Would recommend this book to anyone interested in history or science.
I received this ARC from NetGalley and Scale Free Network in exchange for an honest review.

This is a unique graphic novel that shows the science of what happens in the human body when bacteria takes over. Fascinating and fun!

It was really interesting graphic novel to read. You can learn a lot about bacteria and viruses. I enjoyed it.

This is a great way to introduce some educational topic. I think it would be great for schools.
But as for general reading, I was bored and wasn't sure why this time period was chosen for this story.

I truly enjoyed this graphic novel. The artwork was amazing and the story line kept me intrigued until the end!

I enjoyed the unique combination of a history and science lesson. The parallel of a war outside and inside the body was clever. The possibilities of a digital novel with footnotes clicked on for reference seems perfect for the high school crowd or for any interested budding scientist.

If you like history and science, then you will likely enjoy this graphic novel.

The Invisible War: A Tale on Two Scales tells depicts how dysentery enters the human body, grows and propagates. The story is explained at the bacteria's level as well as the human level.

The novel takes place during WWI and follows nurse Annie Barnaby as she gets infected when treating a patient. We follow the bacteria's journey through her body.

The illustrations are in a black-and-white style and excellent. At the end of the story there's a section with questions and answers related to the disease, WWI and other related information.

Overall, an interesting and informative graphic novel.

I received a copy from the publisher via Netgalley

Certainly not what I expected when I first looked at this. It's a story told on two fronts. First in the hospitals of World War I and secondly, in the bodies of those injured. This is really a learning text about dysentery disguised as a comic. The book did a fantastic job of not only showing how one contracts dysentery but about how it wreaks havoc through the body. The bacteria and cells talking were often silly but kept you interested in what could become a tedious subject. I was surprised at how much I liked this. If only Ailsa Wild could have written all my textbooks in school.

I thought this was a clever way of portraying the impact of a disease like dysentery on the human body. The dual narrative structure worked well, and while at first I wasn’t completely sold on the idea of the bacteria etc. as characters, their individual voices really did work in making the story more engaging and also making it easier to understand what was happening.

3.5 stars

Synopsis: Sister Annie is a nurse on the front in WWI. A soldier comes in presenting signs of dysentery, and Annie is unlucky enough to be exposed to it, and contracts it herself. The story follows Annie, and the shigella bacteria as the disease makes its way through her body.

The story: the first time the story split and started talking about the bacteria, I was a little confused, as I hadn't read anything about the book. The science was easy to follow and understand, especially with the drawings being so clear. The little factoids that were included for the story were also interesting, and watching as Annie got sicker and sicker brought home how devastating this can be.

The art: the art was simple and straight forward, and very clear. While I'm not a biologist, I feel that I could identify the antibodies and the shigella bacteria, if given the opportunity.

A book that melds the genres of historical fiction and science fiction in some really groovy ways.