April 25, 2005
In 1996, freelance lab rat and activist Robert Helms, under the nom de plume Guinea Pig Zero, began to publish a zine with the same name; in Guinea Pig Zero: An Anthology of the Journal for Human Research Subjects, he gathers together a few dozen contributions (many of which he penned) exploring "this dark little corner of modern science from the subject's own viewpoint." From Donno's tale of going bonkers in a sleep-deprivation study, to Beth Lavoie's discussion of the various poisons to which soldiers in the Gulf War were exposed, to Helms's history of a 1935 test subject strike, these are strange and frightening stories that may make our trust in the medical establishment seem na ve.
July 1, 2002
" Guinea Pig Zero" is a journal for and by subjects of medical testing. Editor and leading contributor Helms, who used to use Guinea Pig Zero as a pseudonym, sorts these selections into three categories. "Research Unit Report Cards" mainly profiles facilities and outlines studies, relaying the basics--who is doing what and where, the substances subjects ingest for the studies, how much a subject is paid--that human guinea pigs want to know. Some report cards include letter grades, and all name names as appropriate. Helms proudly lists lawsuits filed against " GPZ" for its forthright evaluations. The articles in "The Treadmill of History" consider such subjects as Alexis St. Martin, who parlayed a fortuitous gunshot wound into a guinea-pig career in the early nineteenth century. The third category is "Literature," including essays, fiction, and poetry about the human guinea pig's world. Spirited writing and quite interesting subject matter distinguish this book that can't help but broaden the scope of just about any collection.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2002, American Library Association.)