Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers

Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers
by Mary Roach

Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers
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Book Summary Information

Author: Mary Roach
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2004-05
ISBN: 0393324826
Number of pages: 304
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
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Book Reviews of Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers

Book Review: Real, Twisted, Funny, and Profoundly Humbling
Summary: 5 Stars

Death is a sure thing for us all and we know nothing about it, or nearly so. The author, Mary Roach, takes the reader with her on her morbid inquiring journey into the many industries of death and forensic science in America. It is surprising, gory, funny, sad, educational, and respectful all at the same time. It is the perfect coming-of-age book of truth for each and every human's required reading material. I think we'd all think twice about a lot of neglect and potential harm to self and others if we all were made to read this book about every ten years of so, like we renew a driver's license.

Summary of Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers

"One of the funniest and most unusual books of the year....Gross, educational, and unexpectedly sidesplitting."-Entertainment Weekly

Stiff is an oddly compelling, often hilarious 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.

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