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Written in Bone
Written in Bone: Hidden Stories in What We Leave Behind | Sue Black
10 posts | 11 read | 12 to read
From the author of All That Remains, a tour through the human skeleton and the secrets our bones reveal. In her memoir All That Remains, internationally renowned forensic anthropologist and human anatomist Dame Sue Black recounted her life lived eye to eye with the Grim Reaper, and in the course of it offered a primer on the basics of identifying human remains, plenty of insights into the fascinating processes of death, and a sober, compassionate understanding of its inescapable presence of in our existence, all leavened with her wicked sense of humor. In her new book, Sue Black builds on the first, taking us on a guided tour of the human skeleton and explaining how each person's life history is revealed in their bones, what she calls "the last sentinels of our mortal life to bear witness to the way we lived it." Her narrative follows the skeleton from the top of the skull to the small bones in the foot. Each step of the journey includes an explanation of the biologyhow the bone is formed in a person's development, how it changes as we age, the secrets is may holdand is illustrated with anecdotes from the author's career helping solve crimes and identifying human remains, whether recent or historical. Written in Bone is full of entertaining stories that read like scenes from a true-life CSI drama, infused with the same humor and no-nonsense practicality about the realities of corpses and death.
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Soubhiville
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Pickpick

From head to toe, skull to metatarsals, the author explains how forensic anthropologists might learn what happened to the bodies and bones they are asked to examine.

There are lots of stories of horrific cases of abuse and torture in here alongside the science, so be aware of that before venturing to read it.

Black works primarily in the UK though she is requested at sites worldwide, and I wondered how close her practice is to US practices.

julesG I've read a few books by forensic experts and it seems the German, UK and US experts all have similar experiences and practices. Which is logical to me, how can they help worldwide (after incidents especially) if they don't work similarly. It would end in chaos. 8mo
Soubhiville Thanks @julesG ! I‘ve got a bookclub meeting about this on Saturday and I‘ll share this. 🙂 8mo
Hooked_on_books I think I have this on audio. I look forward to it! 8mo
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PaperbackReader
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Seems appropriate to be reading this waiting to see the doc

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KristiAhlers
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As part of my reading more nonfiction reading challenge this year I picked this one up from work the other day. I've always been interested in forensics and what can be learned by studying the body. I found this to be an intriguing read, this author specifically with the way she describes things. For some, this may be a dry read as it does at times read textbook-like. Still, I found it a compelling read.

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Cazxxx
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Hoping to finish this one today. I love Sue Black, she has some very interesting Ted Talks and YouTube videos if you‘re interested in forensic anthropology

AllDebooks Oooh, I'll check those out. Thanks for the tip x 1y
Cazxxx @AllDebooks She‘s great and also Scottish like me 😁 1y
See All 7 Comments
BookwormM Did you see the Christmas lectures they were fun 1y
TheEllieMo I adore Sue Black. I‘m currently reading 1y
Cazxxx @BookwormM Yes, I‘ve watched everything I can find with her in it 😃 1y
Cazxxx @TheEllieMo I read that a while ago, also very good. Hope you‘re enjoying it! 1y
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TheEllieMo
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I am posting one book per day from my extensive to-be-read collection. No description and providing no reason for wanting to read it, I just do. Some will be old, some will be new. Don‘t judge me - I have a lot of books. Join in if you want!

#ABookADay2023

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booklover3258
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Bailedbailed

My review of this book can be found on my YouTube Vlog at:

https://youtu.be/sL4NkZk-oAI

Enjoy!

julesG I'm collecting yellow covered non-fiction books. So, even though your review doesn't exactly make me want to read it, I'll probably try to get a copy of this anyways. 2y
tokorowilliamwallace This sounds interesting, though! I love finding miscellaneous subjects of nonfiction thrifting. 2y
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rabbitprincess
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This book is well structured and full of vivid, squirm-inducing details about what can befall the bones in the human body. If you are interested in forensics or medicine, or liked Black‘s first book (All That Remains), you‘ll probably like this one too. I read it in a morning 😁

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Connster
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I‘d 100% forgotten that Lush‘s Twilight bomb does this and it looks super cool! 😍

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veritysalter
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Pickpick

My second book by Prof. Sue Black. She has an amazing ability to describe the body, in all it‘s complicated detail to a lay person, with humour and clarity. This book takes the reader through the skeleton, section by section, and describes how our bones can be used to identify us. Fascinating.

ShelleyBooksie This sounds fascinating! 3y
Lucy_Anywhere Oooh, I have this on my kindle. Did you see the historical cold case series she did on tv years ago? 3y
veritysalter @Lucy_Anywhere Am I right I thinking it was about a small boy? 3y
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tsundokulife
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Pickpick

Not usually much of a non-fiction reader - this was the first of this genre that I couldn‘t put down! Really engaging read, so interesting...I wonder if I should be a forensic anthropologist when I grow up...