Just a Working Stiff

Rating: ☆☆☆

Title: Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers

Author: Mary Roach

Genre: Popular Science

Read: 30th May 2005


Comments: Some pretty entertaining and informative stuff. Ms. Roach explores all the fascinating things that cadavers get up to; being used to study decomposition to aid forensics research, becoming realistic crash-test dummies, getting shot in the name of ballistics research, and of course the old standby of medical dissection. She's obviously very excited about her subject, and sometimes her interviewees seem a little freaked out by her enthusiasm, but her irreverent attitude helps take the edge of some of the gruesomer chapters. All in all a fun read, but perhaps not for the squeamish, (but then again the squeamish probably wouldn't be contemplating reading a book about corpses in the first place).

Quote: "The Holy See, like White'’s transplanted monkey heads, has remained pugnacious in attitude."

Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers