All That Remains
A Life in Death
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- £0.99
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- £0.99
Publisher Description
'Utterly gripping' - The Guardian
'Fascinating' - The Sunday Times
'Moving' - Scotsman
'Engrossing' - Financial Times
Sue Black confronts death every day. As a Professor of Anatomy and Forensic Anthropology, she focuses on mortal remains in her lab, at burial sites, at scenes of violence, murder and criminal dismemberment, and when investigating mass fatalities due to war, accident or natural disaster.
In All That Remains she reveals the many faces of death she has come to know, using key cases to explore how forensic science has developed, and examining what her life and work has taught her.
Do we expect a book about death to be sad? Macabre? Sue's book is neither. There is tragedy, but there is also humour in stories as gripping as the best crime novel.
Part memoir, part science, part meditation on death, her book is compassionate, surprisingly funny, and it will make you think about death in a new light.
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SUE BLACK'S NEW BOOK, WRITTEN IN BONE, IS OUT NOW
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'One might expect [this book] to be a grim read but it absolutely isn't. I found it invigorating!' (Andrew Marr, BBC Radio 4 'Start the Week')
'Black's utterly gripping account of her life and career as a professor of anatomy and forensic anthropology manages to be surprisingly life-affirming. As she herself says, it is "as much about life as about death"' (PD Smith Guardian)
'An engrossing memoir . . . an affecting mix of personal and professional' (Erica Wagner, Financial Times)
'A model of how to write about the effect of human evil without losing either objectivity or sensitivity . . . Heartening and anything but morbid . . . Leaves you thinking about what kind of human qualities you value, what kinds of people you actually want to be with' (Rowan Williams, New Statesman)
'For someone whose job is identifying corpses, Sue Black is a cheerful soul . . . All That Remains feels like every episode of 'Silent Witness', pre-fictionalised. Except, you know, really good' (Helen Rumbelow, The Times)
Customer Reviews
A Truly Amazing Lady
I had the privilege of attending Dundee University on one of the Police DVI courses. I can honestly say Sue was amazing, I could have listened to her forever. Her book is funny, sad, gruesome but so interesting, I never thought that it would form my night time reading over the past few nights! Thank you Sue for all that you do x
Enlightening
What a lovely book to read; the manner in which this extensive and complex subject is written and told is absolutely charming. The subject matter is difficult and Professor Black’s truth and candour has shone throughout. I absolutely recommend this.
There is pleasure in death
Brilliant. The pleasure of reading about death may elude many, but Sue Black is proof that it is possible. It has been the most pleasurable non fiction book I’ve read in a long time. When I first approached it, the book grabbed me in spite of my reservations about a book on something as alien to me as forensic anthropology. Six hundred and something pages later, I can feel how the passion of the author has impacted my original ideas about death, life and everything in between. Highly recommended.