Ok, first things first. This book is filled with disgusting things. It does not pull punches at all, and my first response to this book was, "Ew! Gross!" My second response was, "Interesting! Ew! Gross! I can't read this to the kids! It will freak them out!" So I put it back on the shelf until I felt my niece could handle it.A year later, and my niece is ready for it, so I checked this out for her and let her read it, but with the strict instruction that she was not to read this to her five year old brother. She heeded my instruction, and read the book on her own. She told me that she finished it today, and I asked her what she thought. "Well, it was very disgusting," she said, "and you're right, it would totally freak my brother out. But it was also very interesting, and I really liked it. Did you know that the ancient Egyptians even mummified their animals?!"
So, there you have it. Very interesting and educational, but very gross. This is probably the most graphic book that we've yet read in the You Wouldn't Want to... series, but kids at just that right age do love disgusting stuff. And let's face it, history is full of gross things.