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Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 611
EAN: 9780393324822
ISBN: 0393324826
Label: W. W. Norton & Company
Manufacturer: W. W. Norton & Company
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 304
Publication Date: 2004-05
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
Studio: W. W. Norton & Company
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Editorial Review:
"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.
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Praise for the audio book version
I bought this book in audio format to fit it into my busy life. I just wanted to plug the excellent reading of this most excellent book. Shelly Frasier as narrator is virtuoso. She fully transmits the conversational style of the writing along with the humor. It is almost like hearing the author herself narrating her own work. I join the others who enjoyed this book. You will learn much that you never knew before. I particularly liked the historical accounts on various aspects of the subject ... Read More
Rating: - Worth reading
This is an educational book about the history and future of cadavers. Learn more about mortuaries, human crash test dummies, and freeze drying the dead. Mary Roach writes with a frank, compassionate, and witty voice. She manages to show respect for the dead while introducing cocktail party snippets about herself.
Rating: - What becomes of us when we die
I enjoyed this book; Some people that I talked to didn't want to know the outcome (squeamish I am sure). Roach did a great job with Stiff; I now know what becomes of us when we die. She was right it's not easy to deal with if it's a loved one.
Rating: - Surprisingly funny - LOL material
"Stiff" by Mary Roach is a remarkably funny and informative romp through what could have been a pretty creepy topic - what actually happens to our bodies when we die. Bouncing from what happens if you sign that organ donor card to the history of medicine to cannibalism to what does a soul weigh to the gory details of decay to dozens of other topics, Ms. Roach has just the right touch of quirkiness and hilarity to transmit an astonishing amount of information in a way that doesn't result in losing ... Read More
Rating: - From a medical POV
This is one of my favorite books - as someone who has done a cadaver discection, who works in the health care profession, and as someone who is planning to donate their body to science, this was a witty, eye opening, and educational book - AND made me laugh out loud on occasion. I found myself wanting to share all the interesting things I was learning while reading this book with anyone who happened to be in the vicinity while I was reading. I never knew a book on this subject could be so interesting ... Read More
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