Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers

I saw this book recommended some place I don't even recall and thought it would be an interesting change from my normal reading. I was not disappointed. The author takes a topic that many would find unsettling and makes it informative and actually kind of a fun read while still being respectful.I learned a lot about a topic I never knew I would be interested in until I started reading this book. If you are looking for something different to read and have a bit of curiosity about topics you don't normally explore I would certainly recommend this book.

I defy anyone to dislike a book whose first sentence is "The way I see it, being dead is not terribly far off from being on a cruise ship." Mary Roach's grand tour of the afterlives of corpses makes for compelling--and very often hilarious--reading. The book opens with the first of many colorful scenes, a roomful of plastic surgeons practicing their grotesque (at the best of times) trade on a bunch of severed heads. "The heads have been put in roasting pans--which are of the disposable aluminum variety--for the same reason chickens are put in roasting pans: to catch the drippings." As this passage illustrates, the author keeps the tone of her book light. She is a clever writer, and she makes the sorts of observations of her grim material that the Mystery Science Theater bots might make.But however light her touch, Roach is describing some truly horrific things. There is, for example, the body farm at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, where bodies go to rot for science, their skin sloughing off and their genitalia bloating in full view of researchers and their guests--who leave with their footwear uncleanably soiled with the "liquids of human decay." There is the graduate student who composted a ne'er-do-well to see how efficacious a means of disposal mulch-making might be for third-world countries. ("And because the man was buried whole, Evans had to go out with a shovel and rake to aerate him three or four times.") And there is Roach's attempt--failed--to verify the details of a 1991 Reuter's article which claimed that "a man who worked in a crematorium in Hainan Province was caught hacking the buttocks and thighs off cadavers prior to incineration and bringing the meat to his brother, who ran the nearby White Temple Restaurant." Roach hired an interpreter to facilitate her discussion with the director of the crematorium she believed had employed the buttock-hacker. But how to explain to the interpreter what she needed to know? "In the cab, I tried to think of a way to explain to Sandy what I was about to have her do. I need you to ask this man whether he had an employee who cut the butt cheeks off cadavers to serve in his brother's restaurant. No matter how I thought of phrasing it, it sounded ghastly and absurd. Why would I need to know this? What kind of book was I writing?"For those with a strongish stomach, Mary Roach's book is, really, a delightful read. And eye-opening. And unlike most books, it may have the quite real effect of influencing your after-lifestyle choices.

Having read Mary Roach’s newest book, Grunt, in which she talks about the science of keeping soldiers alive, I decided to read her first one, Stiff, for two reasons. One was to see how much she’d changed as an author, but two – and the bigger reason – was a fascination with the subject. Stiff‘s subtitle is The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers, and the book is about exactly that: what happens to our remains after we die? Like she did with Grunt (and, I’m presuming, all of her books), Roach divides the book into independent chapters, each focusing on different aspects. There’s the bodies that end up in mortuary schools, as well as those that end up dissected by medical students. There are cadavers used as crash testers, those that end up at the Body Farm (where decay is studied, among other things), those that are used to help understand airplane crashes…and those that were used to understand what happened to Jesus and others who were crucified. And there’s much more to be found here, including bodies as compost, as art, and more.It’s a fascinating subject, and one that put Roach on the map – and having read the book, it’s not hard to see why. Done wrongly, the book could seem insensitive, ghoulish, or just depressing. But Roach celebrates these cadavers, reminding the reader just how much has been gained from this research and just how important these bodies have been to not only medicine, but to our society as a whole. At the same time, she never shies away from the discomfort people feel; indeed, one of the most compelling threads in each chapter is discussing with the various people she meets how they manage to maintain a proper emotional balance when they’re working with the dead all the time.Roach is more of a presence in Stiff than she is in Grunt; it feels like more of a first book, and something she might grow away from as she went. But that also feels like a key part of why the book works; after all, death is a fundamentally personal event, and there’s little way to read Stiff and not spend time thinking about what you would want done with your own remains, be it cremation, burial, donation, or more. And Roach builds her own debate into the book, concluding the book with a chapter that finds her pondering what to do with her own remains, having done all these studies and researches into our possible fates.But lest that sound too heavy, Stiff is every bit as engaging and fun as you would hope from Roach’s reputation. Her digressive footnotes and odd asides are still evident, her willingness to ask questions no less charming, and her ability to bring a light tone to even heavy subject matters no less welcome. More than that, she finds depth and thoughtfulness to discuss beyond what you would expect, to the point where you get the impression that she could write a whole second book about bodies and never run out of things to say. That she does all this while being incredibly informative, demonstrating a gift for conveying complex things quickly, and managing to even tell stories, is just testament to her skills as a writer, and the deservedness of her reputation.

Mary Roach is my favorite science author and I recommend every one of her books. This break out book, takes on a sensitive subject that, like many of her subsequent works, leaves readers fascinated and a bit squeamish. Yet she treats the subject with compassion and respect even as we get a sense of her offbeat comedy and sometimes awkward situations and encounters. For anyone new to her work, this book is the place to start, and and I recommend reading them in order. I’ve purchased this book both on Kindle and in hard copy and additional books as well to give away as gifts, often to family and friends in the medical professions. Highly recommended.

Excellent book, from an excellent author.

As I said in the headline, some people might consider it morbid - it's all about cadavers...(dead bodies) !!!This is the 2nd time I've bought the book, because I lost it about 10 years ago, but anyway, I personally "did not" find it morbid at all. I found it just very factual, scientific and mostly fascinating and that's why I'm buying it again. I'm really not even an avid reader, but I enjoyed the book that much. Anyhow, its "different strokes for different folks", but I thought the book was highly interesting and I would definitely reccommend it, but that's up to you. I offered it to a few friends to read and they found it too morbid, but I think if they had been just a bit more open minded and gave it a little bit of a chance, they would have really enjoyed the book, but "buyer beware"(You might find it morbid)... it's your choice - Good Luck.

Fascinating subject well handled. Definitely worth the read as you'll be intrigued and enlightened, amused and horrified in equal measures

A wonderful book, with lots of helpful and humorous information about the human body and what we can all look forward as we age and die!I'm a big fan of Mary Roach's writing style and approach

Ein sehr schönes Buch über die verschiedenen Möglichkeiten was nach dem Tod mit einer Leiche geschieht. Zum Beispiel als Crashtest-Dummies, für Schönheits-OP-Übungen, etc. Ich dachte es würde mehr um die Prozesse im Körper nach dem Tod gehen (Verwesung etc.), aber da hatte ich mich nicht genug informiert. Statt dessen habe ich dennoch viel gelernt darüber, wofür Leichen genutzt werden und kann dieses tolle und auch leicht humoristische Buch nur weiter empfehlen!

本当なら、少し想像するだけで、ここに書かれているように、死体（＝献体された遺体）が生き生きと活躍している世界が密かに世の中に展開していることは、当然のことに過ぎないのかもしれない。どれほどがんばっても、人間の身体の代わりは人間の身体にしか出来ず、生体を使えないのなら死体を使うしかないからだ。しかし（日本では欧米以上に）死体を見せることは、性的なもの以上に禁忌感が強いので、我々が日常生活でこのような世界を垣間見ることはほぼ確実にないし、普通の神経の持ち主なら「恐れ多さ」や「不謹慎感」も手伝って、知りたいとも思わないのだろう。しかし、少し想像力を働かせるだけで、死体がこのような役割を果たすことでどれほど多くの人々を助けているのかも明らかなのだ（そうは言っても、アメリカには、犯罪被害者の死亡時刻推定のために、実際に様々な状態／場所で遺体を腐敗させる研究所がある、というのはかなり驚くが）。作者が実際に突撃取材をしたルポ（かなり笑える）と古今東西の（これまたなかなか笑える）引用の数々が絶妙のバランスで、この本を他の「死体についての本」とは一線を画したものにしている。少なくとも、ほとんどの読者にとっての「あなたの知らない世界」が展開されていることだけは、お約束できるだろう（さらには、笑える読書体験でもあるし、非常に教育的でもある、最後に献体の仕方も書いてある）。翻訳も出ているが、表紙や各章の扉の写真など遊び心は原書の方が数段上。それにしても、日本の遺体事情はいったいどうなっているのだろう？同じ内容の本を出すにしても、はるかに真面目なものになってしまうのではないだろうか。