From Publishers Weekly
Forensic anthropology is a relatively new science, and Ubelaker, curator of anthropology at the Smithsonian Institute, is one of its most notable practitioners. Here, with freelance writer Scammel, he explains how those in the field work with police to solve mysteries lacking clues except for a few bones, on the basis of which experts can determine a victim's race, age and sex and often the cause of his or her death. Though the text is somewhat dry and technical, it can be compelling. The authors discuss problems that forensic anthropolists encounter, such as bones scattered over a wide area, false clues planted by killers, bones chewed by animals and inept procedures by local officials unfamiliar with advanced scientific techniques. True-crime addicts won't want to miss the book. Illustrations not seen by PW. Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
Ubelaker, a forensic anthropologist with the Smithsonian Institution, has aided the FBI for years. Here he shows how traditional methods of physical anthropology and state-of-the-art chemical and computer analysis of victims' remains, no matter how worn or disarticulated, can be used to paint portraits of both the deceased and the circumstances of their deaths with an accuracy that should be discouraging to anyone with murderous intent. Ubelaker offers brief accounts of many cases and does not hold the reader's attention quite as well as Christopher Joyce and Eric Stover's Witnesses from the Grave ( LJ 12/90), which focuses on fewer cases in more detail. Still, this is good reading for amateur sleuths among large public library patrons or undergraduate populations.- Jim Burns, Ottumwa, Ia.Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Book News, Inc.
Dr. Ubelaker is curator of anthropology at the Smithsonian and regular consultant in forensic anthropology for the FBI laboratories. His collaboration with Scammell has produced a casebook written with verve, without sacrificing science. The two authors convey a substantial amount of anthropological information along with a view into the methods of those who piece together puzzles for a living, whether they be murder or anthropological mysteries. Annotation copyright Book News, Inc. Portland, Or.

FROM THE CRITICS

BookList - Jon Kartman

Think the dead tell no tales? This book will set you straight. It outlines just what a forensic anthropologist at the Smithsonian Institution (viz., Ubelaker) does and what he can find out when presented with someone's remains. Depending on the condition of the bones and other tissues of the body, sex, age, race, height, and cause of death--be it natural, accidental, or murderous--can be determined. At times, Ubelaker can even ascertain whether the deceased was left- or right-handed. Of course, not all of his conclusions are correct; he and Scammell discuss several of his misinterpretations in a book you'd think would be quite ghastly but on the whole is more analytical and professional than grisly. Still, the squeamish may not want to read about what could be called Maggot College, where forensic folks watch those ravenous larvae eat, dine and feast on, devour, and multiply on cadavers under varying conditions and determine what information can be gleaned from the amount, type, and condition of maggots in, on, and around the remains. A fascinating illumination of one of the more thankless necessary jobs in our society.

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