Medium – Book
About the Book – Professor Dame Sue Black is a forensic anthropologist, based at the University of Lancaster, who has spent her working life as a forensic anthropologist working in universities and alongside governments and police forces across the UK and the world. In this book, she talks through the skeleton, from the top of the head to the tips of the toes, discussing the science behind the bones as well as case studies from the past, and ones that she has experienced in her working life. She explains how the actions of our lives, from sports to weight to drugs to hobbies, impact on our skeletons, and how the forensic anthropologist might use their skills to identify Jane or John Does, or find cause of death.
My Rating – 3.5/5
My Thoughts – Ever since I watched the TV series ‘Bones’ when I was at University, I have always been fascinated by the idea of what a forensic anthropologist does. That, twinned with my love of crime and medical biographies, made this book a good choice for me. Sue Black is a great author – she is funny and heartfelt, and I enjoyed her little comical asides and her obvious love for her job. Her stories were sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes humorous, and she shared experiences from her own life, one of which made me cry (I’ll leave you to read it and find out which one). I get the feeling that Sue Black would be a brilliant professor, and I am definitely going to be on the lookout for her previous book ‘Whatever Remains’.
That being said, I did find the ‘science-y’ bits a bit difficult to get through, which perhaps says that I am not destined for a late-life career change to forensic anthropology. Sue Black made it as readable as possible, but as someone who is more of a history/narrative person, I did find myself scanning through the technical parts to the case studies. But that is very much me. I’m sure my husband (a physicist) and my friends (a doctor and a psychology graduate) would probably have more luck than me!
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