I wanted to alert the Geripal community about a wonderful and interesting book written by one of our colleagues: Open Wound, The Tragic Obsession of William Beaumont by Jason Karlawish form the University of Pennsylvania. Most people will enjoy the historical fiction (based solidly on actual events) following a young physician (Beaumont) who saves the life of a French fur trapper (Alexis) in a northern Michigan military outpost in 1822. Alexis suffered a gunshot wound and was going to die until Beaumont intervened and treated his wound. Unfortunately, he was left with a fistula, a hole leading directly into his stomach. This hole provided a window into the world of digestion and over the course of the next several years, Beaumont performed numerous experiments on the gastric juice that he collected. These experiments largely proved that digestion is a chemical process rather than a mechanical one. I'm not necessarily a history buff, and I might have missed this book if