On Muscle: The Stuff That Moves Us and Why It Matters

On Muscle explores the science and cultural significance of muscle tissue. Bonnie Tsui examines the three types of muscle in the human body—cardiac, smooth, and skeletal—and their biological functions. She investigates how muscles have shaped cultural definitions of beauty across history and their role in physical and mental health. Tsui combines scientific research with personal narrative and reporting. She profiles the first female weightlifter to lift the Scottish Dinnie Stones, documents a 50-mile run through the Nevada desert following an escape route from a Native boarding school, and travels to Oslo to study how muscles aid recovery from injury and illness. She also explores the brain-body connection through a historic Double Dutch club in Washington, D.C. Throughout the book, Tsui weaves in stories from her childhood with her Chinese immigrant father, a karate black belt, who introduced her to concepts of physical strength and capability.