The Curious Human Knee - by Han Yu

About the Book

Distilling a vast amount of research in a style that is engaging, conversational, and even personal and witty, this book opens readers' eyes to the complexity and significance of the humble knee.

Book Synopsis

Winner, 2023 Choice Outstanding Academic Title
Bronze Winner, 2024 Nonfiction Book Awards

Where would we be without the knee? This down-to-earth joint connecting the thigh and the lower leg doesn't receive the attention it deserves. Yet, as The Curious Human Knee reveals, it is crucial to countless facets of science, medicine, culture, and history--and even what makes us human.

The science writer Han Yu provides an informative, surprising, and entertaining exploration of the human knee across time and place. She begins with our earliest ancestors, emphasizing that walking upright separates us from the apes and bipedal knees appeared long before big brains and sophisticated tools. Yu considers the intricate anatomy of the knee, its evolutionary history, and the complexity of treating knee pain, including her own. She examines why women's knees might be more prone to damage than men's and addresses the roles of race and class in ailments such as osteoarthritis. This book gets knee-deep into an astonishing range of topics--fashion from flappers to miniskirts and ripped jeans, cultural practices spanning Japanese knee walking and Thai boxing, and more. Yu reflects on the symbolic power of kneeling from the imperial court in China to the football field in the United States and shows why the knee figures into so many social and political phenomena.

Distilling a vast amount of research in a style that is engaging, conversational, and even personal and witty, this book opens readers' eyes to the complexity and significance of the humble knee.

Review Quotes

Highly recommended.-- "American Library Association (ALA)"

Highly recommended.-- "Choice Reviews"

As fun and entertaining as it is erudite and well-researched, this book is a very comprehensive look at an overlooked part of our anatomy, warts and all.--Nathan H. Lents, author of Human Errors: A Panorama of Our Glitches, from Pointless Bones to Broken Genes

Han Yu provides an engaging and accessible meditation on the human knee--its evolution, its structure, its function, its pathologies, its weaknesses, as well as its roles in society and fashion, the feminist and equality movements, and aggression. Who knew there were so many ways to view the human knee?--Ian Tattersall, curator emeritus, American Museum of Natural History

In this enlightening blend of science and cultural history, Yu (Mind Thief), an English professor at Kansas State University, considers the evolution and physiology of the human knee, as well as its role in fashion and customs. Yu excels at identifying colorful material on an ostensibly mundane subject, and lay readers will appreciate the accessible prose. This makes for an animated and wide-ranging exploration of an unassuming body part.-- "Publishers Weekly"

Walking will never be the same. Kudos to Han Yu for exploring the functional development, frailties, and cultural impacts of this seemingly simple hinge joint. In a conversational tone, she bridges topics as disparate as women's fashions, martial arts, therapeutic heat, and police tactics. Wonderful stories, personal anecdotes, and summaries of scientific investigations combine to provide the reader with openings for many stimulating dinnertime conversations. Who knew that flapper girls applied rouge to their knees to attract further attention?--Roy A. Meals, MD, orthopedic surgeon and author of Bones, Inside and Out

About the Author

Han Yu is a professor in the Department of English at Kansas State University, where she teaches scientific and technical communication. Her books include Mind Thief: The Story of Alzheimer's (Columbia, 2021).