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Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers
Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers
Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers
Audiobook8 hours

Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers

Written by Mary Roach

Narrated by Shelly Frasier

4/5

()

About this audiobook

An oddly compelling, often hilarious exploration of the strange lives of our bodies postmortem.



For 2,000 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.

Editor's Note

Unexpected laugh…

What could be funnier than dead bodies? “Stiff” was declared one of the top 100 funniest books of all time by NPR in 2019. “Mary Roach’s dissection (heh) of humanity’s use of cadavers in science and medicine is enlivened (sorry) by her cheery enthusiasm for the subject and her deft ability to explain, say, the process of decomposition in hilarious, disgusting detail — and utter clarity,” says the writeup on NPR.

LanguageEnglish
PublisherTantor Audio
Release dateSep 1, 2003
ISBN9781400170975
Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers
Author

Mary Roach

Mary Roach is the New York Times-bestselling author of several popular science books including Packing for Mars and Gulp, which was shortlisted for the Royal Society Winton prize. Grunt was a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Science & Technology Book Prize. She has written for the Guardian, Wired, BBC Focus, GQ and Vogue. Her most recent book is Animal, Vegetable, Criminal.

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