Corpse: Nature, Forensics, and the Struggle to Pinpoint Time of Death

By Jessica Snyder Sachs

Book Overview

When detectives come upon a murder victim, there's one thing they want to know above all else: When did the victim die? The answer can narrow a group of suspects, make or break an alibi, even assign a name to an unidentified body. But outside the fictional world of murder mysteries, time-of-death determinations have remained infamously elusive, bedeviling criminal investigators throughout history. Armed with an array of high-tech devices and tests, the world's best forensic pathologists are doing their best to shift the balance, but as Jessica Snyder Sachs demonstrates so eloquently in Corpse, this is a case in which nature might just trump technology: Plants, chemicals, and insects found near the body are turning out to be the fiercest weapons in our crime-fighting arsenal. In this highly original book, Sachs accompanies an eccentric group of entomologists, anthropologists, biochemists, and botanists -- a new kind of biological "Mod Squad" -- on some of their grisliest, most intractable cases. She also takes us into the courtroom, where "post-O.J." forensic science as a whole is coming under fire and the new multidisciplinary art of forensic ecology is struggling to establish its credibility. Corpse is the fascinating story of the 2000year search to pinpoint time of death. It is also the terrible and beautiful story of what happens to our bodies when we die.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0738207713
• ISBN13: 9780738207711
• Release Date: October 2002
• Publisher: Basic Books
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.5" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

A well-woven tale of history and science

Learning the time of death is crucial in many cases of unnatural death, yet it's still not an exact science. Jessica Snyder Sachs handles the grisly topic with confidence and a conversational tone. The book takes you through the history of determining time of death and then details the recent and current science of it without once slipping into dry academic style or overwrought drama. She uses many anecdotes that bring the topic to life (if you will excuse the expression), and her word sketches of the scientists involved shows the human side of science. Sachs is an accomplished science writer, and it shows. The book is fascinating, not for the faint of stomach but not deliberately grisly either. It's an excellent, readable work, one you'll find hard to put down. I met Ms. Sachs last year, and interviewed her for a review of the book on another website. We sat in her back yard, talking about death and writing. She is gracious and knowledgeable in person, and her personable manner comes through in the book. As someone who has studied criminal justice in various forms for over 20 years, I highly recommend it.

A Forensic Buffs's Best Reading

I am a certifiable forensic "nut". This book is masterful, engrossing and "habit-forming" (many late nights for me attest to this!). Her writing is eloquent, clear and entertaining. Congratulations to you Ms. Sachs. You have won over a very choosy soul when it comes to forensic "entertainment". I have read the rest and now, one of the very best! At first I did not think it would appeal to me (a Christmas present from sisters who think my maudlin fascination with forensics is "icky") but I can't put it down and don't want it to end. I never knew time of death could be so engrossing and "cross-over" into so many interest facets of forensics that appeal to me.

Decomposing was never this much fun!

Remember "Green Eggs & Ham"? This book is not at all like that one. But the moral of Dr. Seuss' classic holds true with respect to "Corpse": Don't be put off by outward appearances, something that looks or sounds bad might actually be quite good.First time author Snyder Sachs takes a forbidding subject and makes it both interesting and, more importantly, a pleasure to read. Whether in a plane, on a beach, or at bedtime, "Corpse" will hold your attention. But wait, the real fun starts when you put the book down and discuss the subject matter with your friends and family. The mention, for example, of "maggots churning across a nearly severed neck" has never failed to attract attention in a crowded room.I know what you're thinking: "icky!" but that brings us back to Dr. Seuss. The beauty of Snyder Sachs' pace and prose prevents the reader from turning away in disgust. On the contrary, while piquing the morbid curiosity in all of us, "Corpse" begins on a dignified, lively plane and remains there -- "Corpse" is anything but dead. It may not be your usual subject matter for light reading but it is well worth it. Say, I do like green eggs & ham.

Life After Death, A Detective's Tool

Whether you enjoy a good murder mystery on occaision, or prefer watching a nature program on the Discovery Channel, you might well enjoy Corpse, as I did. The author places the new discipline of forensic ecology in a 2,000+ year historical perspective around the struggle to determine time of death. It aroused my interests in everything from history, evolution and nature to creative deductive reasoning. The sensational aspects of the discipline's application only add to its appeal, while the author's light touch makes for a fast read and humorous--but respectful--treatment of the subject matter.

Deeply researched overview on forensic biology/anthropology

If you missed the chance to meet the slightly oddballish but at the same time most interesting forenic guys from the U.S. who work on insects found on corpses, know all about how the bones of a 40-year old black male should look like, or how long it takes for a sunflower to grow on a corpse, this is the book for you. The author did an amazing job in contacting more or less all well-known scientists from the U.S. forensic biology/anthropology crowd. Since some of Snyder-Sachs` protagonists wrote their own books, you can even use those to go a little deeper into biographical, or scientific detail. Meanwhile, „Corpse" will give you a popular, deeply researched overview over the field of postmortem interval determination. The book has lots of drive since it goes from case report to case report, plus it will give you a good idea about how the forensic people work, think and behave. Being a European reader, I also like the fact that some historical remarks found their way into the book. But don't be afraid, it's not dry numbers but mostly case reports again. If you are a non-U.S. reader, you may find it interesting to learn more about the variety of scientific methods that were checked and approved by the legal system in the U.S., and to compare it to your own.As a forensic scientist, I am also glad that „Corpse" is out now since many of my undergraduate students cannot tell the difference between what happens at the „Body Farm", a Chief Medical Examiner's Office, and an Institute for Forensic Entomology. If they keep pestering me, I`ll just send the next forensic generation to the library (which is a good place to visit, anyway). There, „Corpse" will tell them all in the best possible popular way. However, you absolutely don't need to be a student to enjoy the book. It will make a good bathtub, or late night, or train ride read for anyone interested in criminalistic techniques, stories, and deduction. And who would not be?