An oddly compelling, often hilarious forensic exploration of the strange lives of our bodies postmortem.
For two thousand years, cadavers--some willingly, some unwittingly--have been involved in science's boldest strides and weirdest undertakings. They've tested France's first guillotines, ridden the NASA Space Shuttle, been crucified in a Parisian laboratory to test the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin, and helped solve the mystery of TWA Flight 800. For every new surgical procedure, from heart transplants to gender reassignment surgery, cadavers have been there alongside surgeons, making history in their quiet way.
In this fascinating, ennobling account, Mary Roach visits the good deeds of cadavers over the centuries--from the anatomy labs and human-sourced pharmacies of medieval and nineteenth-century Europe to a human decay research facility in Tennessee, to a plastic surgery practice lab, to a Scandinavian funeral directors' conference on human composting. In her droll, inimitable voice, Roach tells the engrossing story of our bodies when we are no longer with them. 13 b/w illustrations.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
Weird, yet Good. I heard a lot about this book. I thought the title really caught my eye and the content really attracted me out of curiousity. Once I started reading, I could not put it down. It really got you thinking about other subjects not talked about much and made you wonder about yourself. IT really raised many questions and left some thoughts open ended. I enjoyed reading this book because it was easy to understand and made you wonder about these careers that deal with the cadavers. I recommend this book for the... more info
First Half Good, Last Half Off Topic The first half of the book is very interesting. It covers a variety of situations that human cadavers are used in science and medicine. The last half of the book goes off-topic about historical uses of cadavers (mummies, etc) to just weird (folk medicine).
Cadaver Insight Stiff is a great read - funny, insightful, and well-written. Roach just pulls you along from one chapter to the next - it is so hard to put down. The details and descriptions of what is done to corpses, and has been done to them historically, are fascinating. I would have given it 5 stars if I were able to talk about any of this book with my husband or circle of friends. Without the context of the book the people around me think any details I attempt to discuss with them are horrendously gruesome.more info
Fascinating Read! Well Researched and Goes into Great Detail of Options for Those Thinking of Donating Their Corpse to Science! I found this book to be really interesting. Obviously I'd thought of organ donation before but had never really even thought about the other valuable uses my corpse could have to society. I've learnt a lot from this book, even about what happens to the human body in general if you just stick it in the ground. I think this book is a good thing for those who want their body to go down one of these community beneficial paths when they no longer can use it themselves, to give to their relatives who will be... more info
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