The Great Starvation Experiment: Ancel Keys and the Men Who Starved for Science (edition 2008)

by Todd Tucker

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slug9000's review

I am actually surprised that this book is not more popular. It is a highly readable account of a fascinating medical study conducted on conscientious objectors during World War II. Anyone interested in history, WWII, or medicine will appreciate this lightning fast read.

The book covers a lot of ground at a fast clip. It discusses the rise of Ancel Keys (the starvation study's architect), the status of conscientious objectors during WWII (something I knew nothing about), the lives of some of the study participants, the physical and psychological effects of the study, the study's impact on medicine (it is still cited today), and medical ethics. I couldn't put the book down.

I read a lot of medical history books that are written for the layperson, and have read books on smallpox, polio, typhus, ebola, the flu pandemic of 1918, the plague, tuberculosis, etc. Many of those books get bogged down with highly technical details that contribute little to the overall story, but in my opinion, this book joins the ranks of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks and The Hot Zone: The Terrifying True Story of the Origins of the Ebola Virus as books that provide enough technical detail to further the narrative but not bore the reader. I highly, highly recommend it. (

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slug9000 | Oct 4, 2016 |

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A description of an experiment of starvation and rehabilitation done on 36 CO's towards the end of WWII. Intriguing in terms of the effects immediate and long term of starvation but also for the portraits of many of the people involved. (

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snash | Sep 17, 2021 |

During WWII the world did not have guidelines for human medical experimentation, prisoners and other undesirable members of society were often experimented upon without their consent. Dr. K, had a group of volunteers, conscientious objectors, young men who needed to feel they contributed something to the recovery in Europe, who wanted to do more, who wanted to be able to say they did something ‘honorable’ during the war. They volunteered to be starved and studied for a year. Dr. K’s experiment is the only one of its kind on the medical books and is still cited. There are those who question, today, the morality of the study, but most of the men alive today who participated, said they would do it again. They weren’t paid and they received very little recognition. Interesting read for the curiosity factor, but also for the history of medical experimentation and conscientious objectors. (

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Seafox | Jul 24, 2019 |

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slug9000 | Oct 4, 2016 |

An interesting read. Todd Tucker tries to make the dry scientific information more interesting by attempting to develop a fiction-like plot feeling to the book. Details are added about the individuals talking, the way they smoked cigarettes, and other small things that, while they do add to the depth of the "characters" in the book, are obviously added fiction and add to the bias the author strongly presents throughout the narrative. Mr. Tucker did extensive research on the experiment, the people involved, the politics and the culture of the time during which the experiment took place. Such volumes of information are not easy to put together in a format that can be read by the layperson, but the author manages here. Recommended, if you want to read something highly informative, not entertaining. (

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esander4 | Jul 23, 2013 |

Interesting book on a little-known study conducted during WWII on 36 men who offered themselves as volunteers to study the effects of starvation and the best way to rehabilitate starvation victims.

Unfortunately, it was a bit of a disappointment, given that only 2-3 chapters really deal with the experiment itself, its ethical implications, etc. The others deal with historical context (which is very interesting, but I could've read a history book if that was what I was looking for), history of starvation, history of the Peace Churches (again: interesting, but not what I was looking for in a book with this title), Ancel Key's life & accomplishments, etc.

I also missed more excerpts from the subjects' journals as firsthand account of what was going on, instead of the sometimes-novelesque narration. (

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ariffo | Oct 17, 2009 |

I wouldn't have been aware of this book, except it came across the library desk where I work just after I had finshed "The Story of a Marriage" by Andrew Sean Greer. I recognized immediately that he must have used this book as a reference when writing as background for one of the book's main characters.

The book is interesting on many accounts, including dicussions of human experimentation, the effects of starvation on the human body and mind, conscientious objectors, the profile of Ancel Keys, and the courage and determination of the conscientious objectors who were the volunteers in the experiment.

The research was undertaken with the stated objective of finding out how to best feed the starving people of Europe at the conclusion of WWII. The book clearly points out that Keys had another agenda as well.

I hestitated to read this initially because of the topic, but I am glad that I decided to go ahead with it. The men involved were indeed heroic and the final impact on their lives, fascinating. (

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peachnik | Sep 1, 2009 |

A fascinating and well-written book, The Great Starvation Experiment tells the true story of 36 American men who voluntarily agreed to starve for six months during WWII. Though few people have heard of this experiment, it remains the only extensive, scientific analysis of the effects of starvation on the human body. I found it hard to put down this book. Todd Tucker's writing is compelling, and he makes you understand the agonies the men went through during their six months of starvation and three months of recovery. (

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vastard | Aug 10, 2008 |

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