Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach
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Book Reviews of Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers
Book Review: Would give it six stars... er, if I could tell anybody I read it...
Summary: 5 Stars
This, along with 101 Ways to Kill Your Spouse and Not Get Caught, Bugger Picking for Fun and Profit, Roaches in History, and Surgery for Dummies, is one of the books you can't tell anybody you're reading--especially at work or parties.
Them: "...So! What have you been reading lately?"
You: "Uh... a book on cadavers."
Them: (swallowing martini olive, choking) "Come again?" (cough cough)
You: "Um... well, it's funny... It's a book on... bodies and... Who won the Booker Prize this year?"
Them: "Uh..."
See? Isn't that akward? But I have a way around that for you.
First of all, tell people that you're reading a book that you can't tell anybody you're reading. Of course, this works as a great introduction every time because they want to be one of the people you WOULD tell. "Oh, so what is it?" They say, acting all curious and broadminded. "It's a book about CADAVERS!" And say it grinning like your brain is the size of a martini olive and you're way too happy for your own good.
Kidding aside, I must say that I think this book is essential to anyone who is considering donating their body to science. Do you know what that means--to donate to science? That you will end up in an anotomy lab somewhere, with Kiefer Sutherland asking someone to paddle him back from the dead?
No, sweetie. That means that your dead butt may wind up in a GM lab somewhere duct taped to the driver's seat as a crash test dummy. (This is no big deal if you are from Memphis, as here you can't tell from someone's driving whether or not they're dead, and if you're not sure, cadavers drive better than Memphians. If you see Elvis, then don't worry about it, he's in both catagories, depending on who you ask.)
Or you may have a finger or two sent to a window manufacturer to test out the damage they do when they accidentally slip. But don't sweat it--you won't feel a thing! You will, however, save lives. Did you know for every crash test cadaver donated 64 lives were saved?
Then there's the whole history of the cadaver, which, from what I understand, has been around a while. But what have people done with them? What will they do with them in the future? How did they tell if they were really dead, and what about that Body Farm we keep reading about in forensic novels? Did you know that there's a move in Europe to compost people? (It's a cheap way to turn grandma into a rutabaga). Or how about being processed to remove all your water, so all that remains is that little pile of dust preachers keep telling you is worth less than a buck so better get your life right with God right now, cause you ain't worth nuttin' dead. (That's not true either--you can be sold after you die--more than once). And what about those poor anatomist in the day of witchunts? (Did they turn into Newts?)
And what about leaving a request for those left behind? What makes the best sense for them regarding your remains? Certainly not getting your skull and using it in Hamlet. (Requested by an actor--for real).
And I have to say, Mary Roach simply has the most wicked sense of humor I've seen in many, many years, Right. Where. you! don't. Expect it. It truly was terribly funny.
So if you're on a plane and don't want to converse, or you want people to leave you alone at work, or just are plain old fashioned non-conformist, read this book. It is one of most educating books I ever read and damn funny to boot. (I never thought I would say this, but I actually want to hang out with a Roach).
Also makes a great present to mother-in-laws. Highlight sections and wrap it in butcher paper, hun. Give the old gal a start. Who needs another pair of slippers?
Book Review: Fascinating Read! Well Researched and Goes into Great Detail of Options for Those Thinking of Donating Their Corpse to Science!
Summary: 5 Stars
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 ultimately giving the go ahead, so they can understand the answer of why and more likely respect your wishes. It's also just a fascinating read for those who wonder exactly what happens to a corpse as it decomposes? How do airline investigators use bodies to find out if there was an explosion and not just the burning of the ocean waterskin from examining the corpses? What do the people who use these bodies for their own surgical educational requirements or as researchers think of the corpses? How do corpses and parts of them help prevent injuries and deaths in the automobile industry?
There's just so much information in here, you wouldn't have come across before unless you've researched it before in textbooks and journals. That's the thing about this book, the style is well written for your everyday person, it's not textbooky or medical journally in style. In fact as the chapters go on, Mary roach seems to increase the amount of humour in the footnotes and so on. It's a non fiction adventure that reads like a fiction novel, like in the first chapter (about heads for surgical training) , where she had her arch nemesis the head lopper lady who was giving her dirty looks and on the phone trying to get rid of her. That sort of stuff being included just made the tale that much more readable, relatable and put you in the room amongst the action.
You won't necessarily agree with the author's opinions, I certainly don't agree with her doing what the family members want and not the deceased wishes but she does present her arguments well for her opinions. Nor is the writer a comedian so you're not going to falling out of your chair laughing, think normal journalist humour when you see it on TV or in print, it's like that.
There are some areas of the death industry that aren't delved into much or at all such as what goes on in a normal funeral situation. A few months ago I read a funeral industry set fiction novel called Weepin' Willie which is a very good book but also gives a fair amount of history and interesting facts as told by the mortician (Willie hence the title) on the funeral industry and dealing with dead bodies. If you like this book, you'll enjoy that one as well!
This book never really went into if any of these options - organise taking your corpse for free or even pay your estate for it. Funerals are expensive, if they did this it would increase the corpse participants purely for the financial relief to their families. I would think the plastic surgery industry should (with the exception of severe burns reconstruction and things like this) pay for the corpses. I'd certainly consider it if money went to people in my Will by doing so, but wouldn't just benefit some ageing or vain person who wants to look better or younger.
Another great non fiction book on the death industry that reads as well as a fiction novel is Mop Men: Inside the World of Crime Scene Cleaners by Alan Emmis.
Book Review: Engaging, thought-provoking material written with snappy prose!
Summary: 5 Stars
In a society that's generally very hush-hush and euphemistic about death, Stiff peels back the sheet (as it were, heh heh heh) on all the things that may happen to a person's body after s/he dies. Some people might find this morbid, but I believe it's good to be candid about death -- after all, we ALL go through it, and (as the book explores) we can be used in a myriad of ways, even after we die. I don't want to paraphrase what you'll find because it takes the fun out of it, but some of the topics covered in the book include --
* How we naturally decay
* Bodies used for dissection at medical schools
* Crash test cadaver dummies
* Disturbing experiments done in the 18th and 19th centuries
* New and alternative ways to dispose of your remains
* The "body farm" in Tennessee (check out those haciendas...)
And more! Everything is presented in glorious, juicy detail, with a thick bibliography to back the information up.
The author approaches the subject with a clear, conversational, and humorous style. She manages to sound respectful towards the deceased, but at the same time showing us that post-death, a cadaver's journey can be useful, disgusting, bittersweet, disturbing, hilarious. The prose is snappy and witty and fun and made you want to keep reading.
Some parts of the book were unexpectedly moving, like the chapter on dissection cadavers and their medical students. A close friend of mine is in med school and often tells me what she felt dissecting her cadaver (she felt "proud" of him for being such a fine specimen, his eyelashes made him the most human, his scars from past surgeries made her morose). The chapter in this book really reflected that strange student/cadaver relationship. I'm not gonna lie, I welled up in every part of the book where people expressed their gratitude for their cadaver.
Ultimately, in addition to providing a jam-packed ton of facts about the dead human body, this book manages to be uplifting. grateful, and life-affirming. Knowledge is power, and this book gives the reader power in deciding for themselves what to do with their bodies post-mortem (or what NOT to do). The honesty, humor, and lack of gloom-and-doom makes us realize that death is truly an integral part of life.
Warning: FANTASTIC book, but it gets graphic at times. If you know you can't stomach reading in detail about a rotting body, then you might want to get mentally prepared beforehand. Use your own discretion.
Book Review: Don't judge a book by its cover, or its title . . .
Summary: 5 Stars
Had I done so, I would have missed out on one of the funniest books I've read in a very, very long time. When I first saw this book I asked myself, "who in the right mind would write a book about dead bodies?" Even more disturbing to me was, "why would anyone want to read such a book?" Just the same, I thought I'd pick it up and glance through it (maybe that could be called the "National Enquirer Effect?"). Surprisingly, my cursory glance through it seemed to tell me that this might, just might be interesting to read.
I did not; however, decide to purchase it right away. Instead, I looked at a lot of other books (all of which seemed to on more altruistic topics) before I finally decided to pick up a copy on my way to the checkout counter. Even though, I couldn't help but wonder - what is the clerk going to think of me if I buy a book on DEAD BODIES.
Then, to compound matters, I came down with a summer cold (what could be worse?) later that evening and, not feeling like doing anything (even reading was tough) so I picked up what I thought might be the most mindless (no pun intended) book in my pile of things to read - and this was a no-brainer. While I'm not quite over the horrible summer cold yet (between the meds, sleeping, and normal cold things), I've spent the last couple of days laughing all the way through this amazingly hilarious and yet highly informative book (I admit, I have had to put it down many times whenever my coughing hacks and postnasal drip got the best of me).
Stiff was not only highly entertaining (and a good respite from the death grip my cold had on me), but was actually an extremely fascinating and enlightening look about one of the most taboo topics in our culture - what happens to our bodies after they die. Not wanting to provide any spoilers (many others already have), I will say that Roach looks at just about everything imaginable (with the exception of turning your dead grandmother into a diamond - a process that may not have yet been invented at the time Stiff was written).
Never in a million years would I have thought I might recommend a book on cadavers to anyone. After reading Stiff, I would recommend this book without hesitation - believe me, it'll just kill you. :)
Book Review: GREAT READ...GREAT DIET PLAN!
Summary: 5 Stars
Wow, what can I can say...a nauseating look into the use of cadavers throughout history and today. The book caught my attention within the first few pages, mainly because of the gory detail that disrupted my lunch hour. However Roach works miracles as she portrays the advancement of technology and healthcare through the use of the dead in a way that is non-offensive and lightly humored. At times I even found myself chuckling out loud as I read.
The book was very informative on several levels. I had grown up in a monument shop and so death is nothing out of the ordinary to me. Throughout my years I have heard all there is to hear about the ways of death but have never really thought about the options of the deceased outside of organ donation and having the local sexton plop you 6 feet under. This book brought to light several different uses of cadavers. Many of these uses are hard to think about and sound gruesome; but then, many have help advance medical procedures, forensics, and auto safety.
Not only does Roach touch on the bodies donated to science, but also vividly writes about the decomposition of a body of a typical American burial. It made me question why Americans are so uptight about death and why we are so anxious about what happens to the body. I have often wondered why people are so set on embalming, spending a fortune on a watertight caskets and sealed vaults only to be returned to the earth. I find it interesting that funeral directors never say, "Microbial activity will take action no matter how much embalming fluid you pump into a body". Roach brings up several ethical issues that have good arguments for both sides. Why have parts of your body dismantled when you can rest in peace? Why decay in the ground when you can still have a place in society?
Overall this is an excellent book that is both informative and comical. It's not for the light-stomached, but after you get in a few chapters the interesting facts overdo the descriptions.
A great weekend read!