"Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers" by Mary Roach

Book Details:
Title: Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers
Author: Mary Roach
Published: 2004 by W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
ISBN: 978-0-393-32482-2
Pages: 304 pages
Genre: Nonfiction- Science
Rating: 5 of 5
Read In: 4 days


My Review:
Death is something most in Western society are not comfortable talking about. Although it's an inevitable part of life, the final part, humans as a whole would prefer to put it out of their minds- as if denying that you will one day cease to exist will stop it from happening. Talking of death makes others uncomfortable, and showing an interest in the subject is a quick way to be labeled as "strange" or "crazy". The loss of a loved one is often as troubling as facing our own mortality. Once a loved one has passed, the family must arrange for the body to be handled in the way specified by the deceased, mourn their loss at a funeral or memorial service, oversee burial or cremation, and then it's over and life must go on. Not all bodies are left to rest right away, however. Many people donate their healthy organs to save the lives of strangers in need of a transplant. Others still donate their whole cadavers to science through willed bodies programs, in the hopes of making a different kind of impact in death. But what exactly happens to a body willed to scientific study? This is just the question Mary Roach set out to answer in "Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers". Mary traveled all over the world for the sake of researching this book, finding out the different fates these cadavers meet.

As the author explains, eighty percent of bodies donated to universities and medical centers wind up as hands-on training for anatomy classes. Over the course of a year, students extensively study the inner workings of their specimen, and usually close out the course with some sort of memorial service for the people they have spent so much time with, yet know so little about. All anatomical gifts are required by law to be cremated upon completion of their various duties. Roach also visited a mortuary school, where students perfect their skills on real cadavers. A very controversial use of willed cadavers is experimentation, particularly car crash studies to judge bodily damage sustained in various accident scenarios, for the purpose of perfecting automobile safety. The author takes you into one such study to show the threshold of force a human shoulder can withstand. The military also uses cadavers to test the effectiveness of combat gear in minimizing injury to soldiers. Another use the author delves into takes place at the University of Tennessee, in an area know as the "Body Farm", where hundreds of corpses in a myriad of conditions are left to rot, while carefully examined regularly. This facility operates to increase our knowledge of human decomposition for use in forensics- identifying decaying bodies and solving mysterious deaths. There seems to be no limit to the areas of study cadavers are used in, but Mrs. Roach covers many of the interesting uses throughout her book.

She also examines how bodies have been used throughout history. Extensive research has particularly gone into the use of tissue and bodily fluids in remedies and pharmacology, a practice existing since before written history. From drinking urine to cure jaundice, to seventeenth-century druggists combining human fat or menstrual blood with various herbs and marketing them to cure a slew of minor (or not-so-minor) afflictions, Mary Roach exposes a part of human history few have the stomach to think about. Even human fetuses, the blood of infants, and decaying human flesh were prescribed regularly at some point in time.

Roach also speaks briefly of two newly introduced alternatives to burial or cremation for families to consider. A woman in Sweden is marketing her idea to freeze-dry cadavers before interring them in a shallow grave to turn to compost and fertilize a tree or plant of the family's choosing as a memorial to their loved one. This method is very "green", as well as cost-effective. It appeals greatly to environmentalists, but some have a difficult time degrading their loved ones to fertilizer. The other new method Roach introduces to the reader is referred to as "water reduction". A cadaver is put into a vat of water and lye. The vat is then sealed and pressurized, leaving the body as liquid and extremely fragile bone. The liquid drains out of the vat, and the bone remnants can then be boxed up and buried. This is very effective as it allows the body to take up less reality in a cemetery, making more room for others. Though both methods are controversial for one reason or other, they both show promise in simplifying the disposal of human remains.

"Stiff" is a comprehensive look at "life" after death. Roach uses vast amounts of humor to lessen the grave attitude a book on death could easily project. I laughed out loud many times at the author's witticisms and lighthearted look at a gruesomely interest subject. She has delved deep into history and culture to uncover little-known facts (and secrets), and uses lay terms alongside vivid definitions to be easily understood by anyone who picks it up. I give it five out of five stars.

"Daughter of Dreams" by Marshall Miller

Book Details:
Title: Daughter of Dreams
Author: Marshall Miller
Published: 2011- Self-published
ISBN: 978-1-456-36814-2
Pages: 634 pages
Genre: Science Fiction
Rating: 4 of 5
Read In: 11 days

My Review:
Miller's Daughter of Dreams takes place in a futuristic, post-pandemic world closely resembling our own. The planet is divided into territories and technology has advanced, making bugging and eavesdropping a daily concern for everyone. Following a vast epidemic of the 'zeta virus', a weapon meant for biological warfare, a scientist living in the territory known simply as the City discovers the miracle cure. Unfortunately, it is this discovery that plunges him and his daughter Serda into a whirlwind of fleeing, terror, and most importantly for Serda, self-discovery and eventually acceptance of her uncanny abilities to sense and decipher the souls of those around her.

This novel gets uncomfortably deep in philosophy at some points, but was overall a breath of fresh air in it's ability to combine complexity with a gripping story line and elaborate history of all of it's main characters. The author include a fair amount of central characters and shares the story-telling among all of them, giving each sufficient time in the limelight.

Even the places the author has created for his world are intriguing and contain histories in their own rights. The Communes is a society that keeps space between themselves and the rest of the world, sharing a common set of beliefs known as the Way. These people value their relationship with the earth and value society and the good of all over the good of the individual. The City is the other territory highlighted thoughout the novel. It's a vast metropolitan area rife with politics, crime, and survival-of-the-fittest. Technology is greatly utilized and the border of the City is guarded by Tracers, pods that can scan and detect specific individuals' DNA to aid the Guardian police force in capturing fugitives. Another territory is briefly visited: the Commonwealth. The Commonwealth, though not as specifically described as the Communes and City, seems to be little more than  a peaceful suburban area.

The philosophies devised in this novel center around the soul and it's connection to dreams, and to a lesser degree, the power of love. Serda, later known as Maya, discovers she is a Dreamer while hiding in the Communes from a corrupt Councilor looking to torture the cure for the zeta virus out of her father for his own political gain. She begins to see that she can feel and visualize the feelings of those both physically and emotionally close to her. She meets Ian in the Communes and he begins her adventures to understand and contain her power, which later becomes her greatest defense. Though her power makes others unsettled and dangerously vulnerable in her presence, Maya finds that those who truely love her are unaffected by the negative affects of her power, allowing her the close human connections she has longed for her entire life. Much of the book centers around Maya and her extraordinary power, while the race to protect and properly utilize the cure sometimes takes the back burner.

I have given this novel four out of five stars. Sometimes it becomes very abstract and difficult to wade through, but the conclusion could not have been any better.

"Eviction Earth" by T.C. Pannone

Book Details:

Title: Eviction Earth

Author: T.C. Pannone

Published: 2010- Self-Published

ISBN: 978-1-45638-564-4

Genre: Science Fiction

Pages: 257

Rating: 2 of 5

Read in: 6 days

My Review:

I have read more than my fair share of both good and bad science fiction, and Pannone's Eviction Earth falls straight into the latter category for me. The author had a great plot line going in the beginning, but his cookie-cutter characters, lack of plot development, and gross misuse of grammar and punctuation had me rooting for the asteroid just so the book would end.

The first real problem I had with this novel was character development, a major factor in the success of a work of fiction. The reader wants a memorable cast of characters to keep the book exciting and enjoyable. I just did not find that here. The main protagonist, Kal, is nothing special. An ex-college football player turned disability case after a motorcycle accident is not very intriguing, nor does he possess any higher mental faculties to make him and his family worthy of such awesome adventures as they face. There is little back story and Kal and his family turn out to be just as boring as can be. The reader gets next to no insight into their minds, thought processes, or personalities, making them as two-dimensional as the words on the page.

Secondly, the plot development was severely lacking all through this novel. I admire the twists and turns, but the author crammed far too much plot in a relatively short novel and therefore did not do justice to what could have been a very exciting plot. The characters bounce from one situation to the next so quickly there is rarely enough time for Pannone to thoroughly and successfully harness and convey the situation to the reader. It also leaves much to be desired when it come to the life and world of the underground dwellers. The book ends very abruptly and, in my opinion, does not successfully conclude the story. I was dying to know about their years underground, but had to settle for my own theories. Another one hundred pages would have done this novel a world of good.

Lastly, the author's errors in grammar and punctuation were numerous. It appeared the first half of the book that perhaps the author was unaware of what a comma was. That idea was thrown out the window in the second half, where they were thrown in seemingly at random, though still rarely. Pannone also seems to have an issue with homophones. I laughed out loud each time I read that one who has betrayed his people is  a "trader". I also caught an instance or two of using "than" rather than "then". Maybe another read-through before publication would have been a good idea... I strongly recommend an editor for his next novel. The dialogue was also consistently cheesy and childish- not at all the adult-caliber talk one expects from a novel meant for an older crowd.

Overall, disappointed by this one, but the last half proved that the author did have a good idea, just perhaps not the patience or ability to convey it to the rest of us. For that, I give Eviction Earth two out of five stars.

"Glow" by Amy Kathleen Ryan

Book Details:
Title: Glow
Author: Amy Kathleen Ryan
Published: anticipated September 2011 by St. Martin's Press
ISBN: 978-0-312-59056-7
Genre: Young Adult/Science Fiction
Pages: 307
Rating: 5 of 5
Read in: 6 days


My Review:
Amy Kathleen Ryan takes young adult novels where few have previously tread- deep into outer space. The first book in her new series, Sky Chasers, Ryan offers her readers a look into a dog-eat-dog future of desperation, uncertainty, and just a little bit of faith and hope. Two young lovers traveling across the universe on the Empyrean, one of two space ships on a mission to revive the human race on a planet called "New Earth", are forced to grow up when thrown into violence and unimaginable danger at the hand of the captain of their sister ship, the New Horizon. Although written for a teenage audience, it's graphic and violent and features more adult themes such as duty to society, religious faith, bravery in the face of opposition, and questions the morality of advanced human fertility practices. While I saw the necessity of religion in the overall plot of the book, I did find it to be a little too preachy in a couple places.


By taking her characters out of the world we know and placing them into the fantastic unknown of deep space, Ryan had the opportunity to carve her own world out of uncharted territory. She fully took advantage of this situation and puts the reader directly into her own interpretation of life in a space ship- from the design and structure of the ship itself to the social structure, hive mind, and a level of desperation that we don't always get the chance to feel with our feet planted firmly on planet Earth.


I was very impressed by the level of passion in the characters' emotions. I felt equally as angry as Kieran for being held prisoner for crimes he feels he did not commit, and as hurt and devastated as Waverly, defiled and held against her will aboard a captive vessel. I found that Ryan's descriptive writing style, especially while conveying a character's deep inner feelings, ignited real emotion in myself- it actually felt like I was the one being wronged rather than simply reading about events in the life of a fictional person. I wanted to jump into the pages and deal out the justice the protagonists so badly wanted.


As in any other novel catering to a young adult audience, Glow is also a love story. Thankfully, it's a more realistic romance than other books of the genre. The author  doesn't dwell as much on the blind romance of two teenagers, paying fair attention to the more pressing conflicts in the story. Waverly, a nearly 16-year old girl, maintains rational thinking and isn't blinded by her young love for her betrothed, Kieran. This balance reminds the reader that while there is a little romance, there are more critical issues at hand to be dealt with. I greatly appreciated the lack of mushy love scenes and professions of undying love, as those would naturally be absent in the situation these kids are thrown into, though it is by no means void of heart-felt moments of love and yearning.


I don't give five stars very often, but I feel this novel really deserves it. The end left me wanting more but, alas, I must wait. It's one of the best books I have read this year and I truly look forward to the release of its sequel!

"Sector 64: Coup de Main" by Dean M. Cole

Book Details:
Title: Sector 64: Coup de Main
Author: Dean M. Cole
Published: 2011- Published by Author
ISBN: 978-1-460-96253-4
Genre: Science Fiction
Pages: 262
Rating: 1 of 5
Read in: 6 days



My Review:
I really enjoy science fiction as a whole, and I really wanted to like this book. However, that did not happen. A barbaric alien race is vaporizing everyone on the planet and it's U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Jake Giard and two of his fellow wing-men to the rescue! Unfortunately, they could not rescue me from falling asleep during most of the book...


My biggest issue with this book has nothing to do with the story itself. The copious amount of spelling, punctuation, capitalization, tense, and grammar errors made me cringe constantly. I started to mark these instances, but they are so common that I soon gave up. I understand that this novel is self-published and probably never graced the eyes of an editor, but I am a firm believer that one should edit one's work before submitting it to the general public. I'm far from perfect in these areas myself, but I do know how to use spell check and failing to catch so many errors makes the entire text seem sloppy and may cause the eyes of avid and critical readers to spontaneously bleed. Lines such as "Let's not waist [sic] Major Pell's sacrifice..." and referring to the "soul" of a shoe make me wonder how much attention the author paid to what he was writing.


The author of this novel, Dean M. Cole, is an Army vet and pilot and he uses his expertise in this area to be highly descriptive when it comes to pilot protocol and physics throughout the book. I appreciated that he is so knowledgeable, but it often left me wondering what he was talking about. I'm not well versed in physics or pilot lingo, so I felt a little left out in some parts. Another word usage problem I found was the unbelievable number of times "buddy" is used. This became a problem before I even finished the first chapter!  


I had a very difficult time connecting with any of the characters and I think this was because of how weak the majority of them are. For an Air Force fighter pilot, Victor Croft is amazingly faint at heart. He is so scared and anxious almost the entire book, to the point that I was shocked he never broke down and cried. This is pretty unbelievable behavior for a war vet. I also felt that Jake's girlfriend Sandy was completely unnecessary. She played no important role in the book and only caused unnecessary distractions from the plot line.


I did appreciate the basis of the plot though. I loved that the author made the human race descended from wayward aliens. Also, the technology introduced throughout the novel was very fascinating- especially the "Turtle" ship and EVA suits. the author showed great vision and creativity in the invention of these items.


Overall, I found the dialogue to be painfully cheesy and riddled with a vast over-abundance of cliche phrases, such as "assuming makes an ass out of you and me" and "the more things change, the more they stay the same." The characters are flat and not memorable, and a little more original content would have been nice.. I give it a one-star rating.