Death to Dust: What Happens to Dead Bodies

by Kenneth V. Iserson

Written for both laymen and professionals, this book gives answers the questions that everyone wants to ask in a question and answer format. What really happens to a dead body? What does our culture do with corpses and what have other cultures done? How does a body turn to dust? What happens in embalming, cremation, cryogenic preservation, autopsies, anatomical dissection, organ donation, burials, and funerals? How do we transport bodies and what does a medical examiner really do? How about the more bizarre uses for corpses, such as cannibalism, body snatching, use in secret rites, research, and religious ceremonies? This book describes individual and societal experiences, drawing not only from the medical sciences, but also from the arcane and secretive world of the funeral industry. We rarely speak about death—because it is the pornography of our culture and we know so little about it. This book sheds light into dark corners of our society and proves that, once again, truth is stranger than fiction.

Genres: Death, Nonfiction, Science, Reference, Medicine, Medical, History

Hardcover

First published March 1, 1994

Reviews

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Everything I have always wondered about, but figured I would be a social outcast if I asked.

[Pat Dugan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Death - The 500 pound Gorilla in the room. People that are curious what happens to humans after death will want to read this book. We love to live by not facing the final page of our lives. This book is not for the faint hearted, people that think that enbalming will preserve the body forever, or people that are just naive about death. Everybody dies, rots, stinks and disolves.

"The womb shall forget you, the worms shall feed sweetly upon you and you shall no longer be remembered."
Job 24:20

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everything you EVER wanted to know about death and then some. The only thing is that some of the questions were sort of redundant but overall, a great book that I finished within two days.

[Arnpoe · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the most interesting nonfiction books I own. It covers all sorts of aspects of death traditions and the funeral industry.

[mad mags · Rating 5 out of 5]

An Encyclopedic Overview of Death & Dying

Of the many books on death and dying that I've read over the past six months, Kenneth Iserson's "Death to Dust" is by far the most comprehensive and enjoyable of the bunch. Weighing in at over 800 pages, "Death to Dust" is truly an encyclopedic approach to the subject.

Iserson divides his discussion into fourteen chapters; the shortest is about eleven pages (the introduction), while the longest is a massive 80+ pages (the average chapter length is about 50 pages). He adeptly covers all aspects of death, dying, grief, mourning, and post-mortem activities and concerns. He discusses practical matters, such as how to arrange a funeral, bodily transport across state lines, embalming, funerary rituals and etiquette, cremation, and advance directives. Iserson even includes a helpful, ten-page "Body-disposal Instructions and Discussion Guide," designed to help the living ease the inevitable burden their next of kin will face when they pass away.

However, "Death to Dust" is not simply a consumer guide. Although he does offer a wealth of practical information, he also launches into more esoteric and macabre discussions. Some chapters are certainly not for the faint of heart. If cannibalism, headhunting, corpse dismemberment, grave robbing, anatomical dissection, autopsies, or putrification give you the heebie-jeebies, read with caution! True to its encyclopedic nature, "Death to Dust" takes care to cover ALL aspects of death and dying - particularly the more unpleasant and morbid topics. Iserson approaches these subjects with a dry sense of humor. Although I thought that his witticisms spiced the book up and made his discussion more entertaining, some audiences might be taken aback by Iserson's (sometimes) light tone.

It's obvious that Iserson (or his editor!) spent a lot of time making the book easily navigable (an especially important detail in a book this size!). Each of the fourteen chapters is further sub-divided into lettered subsections (usually 25+ per chapter). The subsections each have their own heading and read like short articles, so that readers can easily browse through the book and skim over desired sections. The index and table of contents are also very detailed. Finally, Iserson has gone to great pains to cite every single reference he consulted while constructing the book - and there are many! The typical chapter has hundreds of footnotes, which are conveniently included at the end of each individual chapter.

For the macabre among us, if you buy just one book on death and dying this year, look no further - "Death to Dust" is it! Those looking to arrange for their own post-mortem plans might find the book helpful as well, although there are consumer guides designed specifically for advising individuals of wills, advance directives, organ donation, and corpse disposal ("Caring for the Dead: Your Final Act of Love," by Lisa Carlson, is an excellent place to start). I'm not sure I'd recommend "Death to Dust" to the newly bereaved, however; some of the subject matter might prove a bit upsetting. On the upside, it's easy to skip over these sections altogether, as the book is very organized.

My only gripe: Iserson included WAY too many quotes from the self-proclaimed "poet-mortician," Thomas Lynch - who, I have determined, is a gawd-awful poet with an exaggerated view of his own self-importance. I literally cringed every time Iserson included excerpts of his amateurish prose - it's just that painful.

http://www.easyvegan.info/2005/07/25/...

[Aaron the Pink Donut · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book really should have been called:” Death and dying: everything you ever wanted to know but were afraid to ask”. In very clear and simple language this book fills you in on just about every aspect of death you could ever want to know. From the legalities to burial at sea to the actual physics of decomposition and everything else in between, this book really has it all. A must have!

[Patti McDermott · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this up in the medical bookstore for the university hopsital where I work. With an interest in anthropology as well, it was one of the best books I have ever read. A topic we must all deal with in our lives and few have the inclination to learn much about.

[Loraine · Rating 5 out of 5]

From reading this, I now know just about everything about death... and a little I didn't really want to know.

[Kindra · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, but it did become repetitive, and it felt like it was rehashing the same information at times. It read like a textbook, which perhaps it was at some point. I enjoyed the expansive nature of the topics it addressed, and that it included practices and histories of other countries. I did find myself glazing over certain parts of it, and there were parts that were clearly dated, particularly when discussing AIDS related data/information.

I enjoyed learning about how people have been caring for their dead over the past hundreds of years around the world, as well as how bodies are prepared for autopsies. How a person becomes “officially” dead, who can declare it to be so, and what happens to a body over time during various methods of burial/body disposal; all of these were topics i found very interesting to learn about, as well as many others.

Overall I learned a lot, but I would still recommend some other books to people interested in the topics before this one, if only for its more textbook like reading.

[Kindra McRobbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book, but it did become repetitive, and it felt like it was rehashing the same information at times. It read like a textbook, which perhaps it was at some point. I enjoyed the expansive nature of the topics it addressed, and that it included practices and histories of other countries. I did find myself glazing over certain parts of it, and there were parts that were clearly dated, particularly when discussing AIDS related data/information.

I enjoyed learning about how people have been caring for their dead over the past hundreds of years around the world, as well as how bodies are prepared for autopsies. How a person becomes "officially" dead, who can declare it to be so, and what happens to a body over time during various methods of burial/body disposal; all of these were topics I found very interesting to learn about, as well as many others.

Overall I learned a lot, but I would still recommend some other books to people interested in the topics before this one, if only for its more textbook like reading.

[Andi Plouffe · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly informative and well put together.

[Lee Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely fascinating. Everyone should read it.

[Iz McCann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastically informative text! Helped me demystify the process of decomposition & death.

[KatEyes · Rating 5 out of 5]

A MUST READ!!! I've read it countless times!

[Sascha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the most incredibly complete books on death and the disposition of human bodies I have ever read. It is incredibly readable, filled with more information than I thought I was even interested in, and answered questions I didn't even know I had. The author masterfully blends current practices with historical information showing our journey through time with death. The only thing I'll say I read the first edition so it is definitely is a bit out of date. This book is so good I'm going to buy the updated version and read it again.

[Claudia Loureiro · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a well written and very well researched book. It contains more details than most of us have ever wanted to know about what happens to bodies after death - including funeral practices, the hows and whys of autopsies, the timeline of rigor mortis and decomposition, tales of cannibalism, body snatching and premature burial... it's all in here. Despite the macabre title, this book is a real treasure!

[Bonnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Everything you would ever want to know - and much that you don't - about the processes and systems surrounding dead bodies and death. How a body decays, morgues, death certificates, the criteria for declaring a person dead, the high costs of burial, burial customs around the world, etc. etc. Part of my background reading for the "death" class I'm teaching in the fall semester.

[Avis Black · Rating 4 out of 5]

Completely gruesome, but it will answer all your questions.

[Tiffany · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't remember much about this one. I remember thinking it's ok. I have it if you REALLY want to read it.

[Everett Marx · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm learning "everything I wanted to know about what happens to dead bodies." It's research for a novel. A highly informative, well-organized book.

[Charles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating.

[Chanita]

In Kate Braestrups "Here If You Need Me"

[Sally Kilpatrick]

Fascinating, but not for the faint of heart.

[Todd · Rating 5 out of 5]

Glenn and I red this book several years ago and we still talk about it. This is a fascinating book.

[Frank R · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everything you ever wanted to know; truly comprehensive. A fascinating read.

[Havala · Rating 4 out of 5]

Comprehensive. So many questions answered, many I never thought to ask.

[Caoilinn Hayden · Rating 5 out of 5]

I mean very detailed answering of any question you may have. embalming, organ procurement, autopsy you name it!