Listen free for 30 days
-
Written in Bone
- Hidden Stories in What We Leave Behind
- Narrated by: Sue Black
- Length: 11 hrs and 41 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wish list failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy Now for $41.08
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Publisher's Summary
In her memoir All That Remains, internationally renowned forensic anthropologist and human anatomist Dame Sue Black recounted her life lived eye to eye with the Grim Reaper. During the course of it, she offered a primer on the basics of identifying human remains, plenty of insights into the fascinating processes of death, and a sober, compassionate understanding of its inescapable presence in our existence, all leavened with her wicked sense of humor. Now in this book, Black builds on that memoir, taking us on a guided tour of the human skeleton and explaining how each person's life history is revealed in their bones, which she calls "the last sentinels of our mortal life to bear witness to the way we lived it".
Her narrative follows the skeleton from the top of the skull to the small bones in the foot. Each step of the journey includes an explanation of the biology - how the bone is formed in a person's development, how it changes as we age, the secrets it may hold - and is illustrated with anecdotes from the author's career helping solve crimes and identifying human remains, whether recent or historical. Full of entertaining stories that appear like scenes from a true-life CSI drama, Written in Bone is infused with humor and no-nonsense practicality about the realities of corpses and death.
You may also enjoy...
-
Quackery
- A Brief History of the Worst Ways to Cure Everything
- Written by: Lydia Kang, Nate Pedersen
- Narrated by: Hillary Huber
- Length: 10 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What won't we try in our quest for perfect health, beauty, and the fountain of youth? Well, just imagine a time when doctors prescribed morphine for crying infants. When liquefied gold was touted as immortality in a glass. And when strychnine - yes, that strychnine, the one used in rat poison - was dosed like Viagra. Looking back with fascination, horror, and not a little dash of dark, knowing humor, Quackery recounts the lively, at times unbelievable, history of medical misfires and malpractices.
-
-
how bad the narration was
- By adam martin on 2024-11-03
Written by: Lydia Kang, and others
-
All That Remains
- A Renowned Forensic Scientist on Death, Mortality, and Solving Crimes
- Written by: Sue Black
- Narrated by: Angela Dawe
- Length: 10 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Dame Sue Black is an internationally renowned forensic anthropologist and human anatomist. She has lived her life eye to eye with the Grim Reaper, and she writes vividly about it in this book, which is part primer on the basics of identifying human remains, part frank memoir of a woman whose first paying job as a schoolgirl was to apprentice in a butcher shop, and part no-nonsense but deeply humane introduction to the reality of death in our lives. It is a treat for CSI junkies, murder mystery and thriller fans, and anyone seeking a clear-eyed guide to a subject that touches us all.
-
-
A shame it wasn't narrated by Black
- By Anonymous User on 2022-05-02
Written by: Sue Black
-
The Bodies Keep Coming
- Dispatches from a Black Trauma Surgeon on Racism, Violence, and How We Heal
- Written by: Brian H. Williams
- Narrated by: Brian H. Williams
- Length: 7 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Trauma surgeon Dr. Brian H. Williams has seen it all—gunshot wounds, stabbings, traumatic brain injuries—and ushers us into the trauma bay, where the wounds of a national emergency amass. As a Harvard-trained physician, he learned to keep his head down and his scalpel ready. As a Black man, he learned to swallow rage when patients told him to take out the trash. Just days after the tragic police shootings of two Black men, he tried to save the lives of officers shot in the deadliest incident for US law enforcement since 9/11.
-
-
Race is not a risk factor
- By lourdes on 2024-10-21
Written by: Brian H. Williams
-
The Lives of Bees
- The Untold Story of the Honey Bee in the Wild
- Written by: Thomas D. Seeley
- Narrated by: William Hope
- Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Humans have kept honey bees in hives for millennia, yet only in recent decades have biologists begun to investigate how these industrious insects live in the wild. The Lives of Bees is Thomas Seeley’s captivating story of what scientists are learning about the behavior, social life, and survival strategies of honey bees living outside the beekeeper’s hive - and how wild honey bees may hold the key to reversing the alarming die-off of the planet’s managed honey bee populations.
-
-
Not a Book
- By Taylor on 2019-11-07
Written by: Thomas D. Seeley
-
Mrs. Sherlock Holmes: The True Story of New York City's Greatest Female Detective and the 1917 Missing Girl Case That Captivated a Nation
- Written by: Brad Ricca
- Narrated by: David Bendena
- Length: 12 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mrs. Grace Humiston was an amazing lawyer and a traveling detective during a time when no women were practicing those professions. She focused on solving cases no one else wanted and advocating for innocents. One of her greatest accomplishments was solving the cold case of a missing 18-year-old girl, Ruth Cruger. Her work changed how the country viewed the problem of missing girls, but it came with a price: she learned all too well what happens when one woman upstages the entire NYPD.
-
-
So entertaining and informative.
- By Sandy M on 2019-06-10
Written by: Brad Ricca
-
The Stoic Challenge
- A Philosopher's Guide to Becoming Tougher, Calmer, and More Resilient
- Written by: William B. Irvine
- Narrated by: Brian Troxell
- Length: 4 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Some people bounce back in response to setbacks; others break. We often think that these responses are hardwired, but fortunately this is not the case. Stoicism offers us an alternative approach. Plumbing the wisdom of one of the most popular and successful schools of thought from ancient Rome, philosopher William B. Irvine teaches us to turn any challenge on its head. The Stoic Challenge, then, is the ultimate guide to improving your quality of life through tactics developed by ancient Stoics, from Marcus Aurelius and Seneca to Epictetus.
-
-
Practical Philosophy
- By Matt. D on 2020-05-06
Written by: William B. Irvine
-
Quackery
- A Brief History of the Worst Ways to Cure Everything
- Written by: Lydia Kang, Nate Pedersen
- Narrated by: Hillary Huber
- Length: 10 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What won't we try in our quest for perfect health, beauty, and the fountain of youth? Well, just imagine a time when doctors prescribed morphine for crying infants. When liquefied gold was touted as immortality in a glass. And when strychnine - yes, that strychnine, the one used in rat poison - was dosed like Viagra. Looking back with fascination, horror, and not a little dash of dark, knowing humor, Quackery recounts the lively, at times unbelievable, history of medical misfires and malpractices.
-
-
how bad the narration was
- By adam martin on 2024-11-03
Written by: Lydia Kang, and others
-
All That Remains
- A Renowned Forensic Scientist on Death, Mortality, and Solving Crimes
- Written by: Sue Black
- Narrated by: Angela Dawe
- Length: 10 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Dame Sue Black is an internationally renowned forensic anthropologist and human anatomist. She has lived her life eye to eye with the Grim Reaper, and she writes vividly about it in this book, which is part primer on the basics of identifying human remains, part frank memoir of a woman whose first paying job as a schoolgirl was to apprentice in a butcher shop, and part no-nonsense but deeply humane introduction to the reality of death in our lives. It is a treat for CSI junkies, murder mystery and thriller fans, and anyone seeking a clear-eyed guide to a subject that touches us all.
-
-
A shame it wasn't narrated by Black
- By Anonymous User on 2022-05-02
Written by: Sue Black
-
The Bodies Keep Coming
- Dispatches from a Black Trauma Surgeon on Racism, Violence, and How We Heal
- Written by: Brian H. Williams
- Narrated by: Brian H. Williams
- Length: 7 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Trauma surgeon Dr. Brian H. Williams has seen it all—gunshot wounds, stabbings, traumatic brain injuries—and ushers us into the trauma bay, where the wounds of a national emergency amass. As a Harvard-trained physician, he learned to keep his head down and his scalpel ready. As a Black man, he learned to swallow rage when patients told him to take out the trash. Just days after the tragic police shootings of two Black men, he tried to save the lives of officers shot in the deadliest incident for US law enforcement since 9/11.
-
-
Race is not a risk factor
- By lourdes on 2024-10-21
Written by: Brian H. Williams
-
The Lives of Bees
- The Untold Story of the Honey Bee in the Wild
- Written by: Thomas D. Seeley
- Narrated by: William Hope
- Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Humans have kept honey bees in hives for millennia, yet only in recent decades have biologists begun to investigate how these industrious insects live in the wild. The Lives of Bees is Thomas Seeley’s captivating story of what scientists are learning about the behavior, social life, and survival strategies of honey bees living outside the beekeeper’s hive - and how wild honey bees may hold the key to reversing the alarming die-off of the planet’s managed honey bee populations.
-
-
Not a Book
- By Taylor on 2019-11-07
Written by: Thomas D. Seeley
-
Mrs. Sherlock Holmes: The True Story of New York City's Greatest Female Detective and the 1917 Missing Girl Case That Captivated a Nation
- Written by: Brad Ricca
- Narrated by: David Bendena
- Length: 12 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mrs. Grace Humiston was an amazing lawyer and a traveling detective during a time when no women were practicing those professions. She focused on solving cases no one else wanted and advocating for innocents. One of her greatest accomplishments was solving the cold case of a missing 18-year-old girl, Ruth Cruger. Her work changed how the country viewed the problem of missing girls, but it came with a price: she learned all too well what happens when one woman upstages the entire NYPD.
-
-
So entertaining and informative.
- By Sandy M on 2019-06-10
Written by: Brad Ricca
-
The Stoic Challenge
- A Philosopher's Guide to Becoming Tougher, Calmer, and More Resilient
- Written by: William B. Irvine
- Narrated by: Brian Troxell
- Length: 4 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Some people bounce back in response to setbacks; others break. We often think that these responses are hardwired, but fortunately this is not the case. Stoicism offers us an alternative approach. Plumbing the wisdom of one of the most popular and successful schools of thought from ancient Rome, philosopher William B. Irvine teaches us to turn any challenge on its head. The Stoic Challenge, then, is the ultimate guide to improving your quality of life through tactics developed by ancient Stoics, from Marcus Aurelius and Seneca to Epictetus.
-
-
Practical Philosophy
- By Matt. D on 2020-05-06
Written by: William B. Irvine
-
Lonesome Dove
- Written by: Larry McMurtry
- Narrated by: Lee Horsley
- Length: 36 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Two retired Texas Rangers, Captains Woodrow Call and Augustus "Gus" McCrae, lead a cattle drive from the small town of Lonesome Dove to the unsettled Montana territories. On their grueling journey, they are joined by Joshua Deets, a Black scout and former Ranger, Jake Spoon, a fugitive, and Newt Dobbs, a 17-year-old boy who may have family ties to Call. Richly authentic, beautifully written, always dramatic, Lonesome Dove will make listeners laugh and weep, dream and remember.
-
-
A Classic
- By Susan Wallace on 2021-10-26
Written by: Larry McMurtry
-
Out of the Silence
- After the Crash
- Written by: Eduardo Strauch, Mireya Soriano, Jennie Erikson - translator
- Narrated by: Timothy Andrés Pabon
- Length: 5 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It’s the unfathomable modern legend that has become a testament to the resilience of the human spirit: the 1972 Andes plane crash and the Uruguayan rugby teammates who suffered 72 days among the dead and dying. It was a harrowing test of endurance that ended in a miraculous rescue. Now comes the unflinching and emotional true story by one of the men who found his way home. Four decades after the tragedy, a climber discovered survivor Eduardo Strauch’s wallet and returned it to him. It was a gesture that compelled Strauch to finally “break the silence of the mountains.”
-
-
Excellent and uplifting
- By Roberta W on 2024-02-11
Written by: Eduardo Strauch, and others
-
Geisha, a Life
- Written by: Mineko Iwasaki, Rande Brown
- Narrated by: Cindy Kay
- Length: 9 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Geisha, a Life, Mineko Iwasaki tells her story, from her warm early childhood, to her intense yet privileged upbringing in the Iwasaki okiya (household), to her years as a renowned geisha, and finally, to her decision at the age of 29 to retire and marry, a move that would mirror the demise of geisha culture. Mineko brings to life the beauty and wonder of Gion Kobu, a place that "existed in a world apart, a special realm whose mission and identity depended on preserving the time-honored traditions of the past."
-
-
Fascinating
- By Myriam Gervais on 2024-11-05
Written by: Mineko Iwasaki, and others
-
Forest Walking
- Discovering the Trees and Woodlands of North America
- Written by: Peter Wohlleben, Jane Billinghurst
- Narrated by: Sean Sonier
- Length: 6 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When you walk in the woods, do you use all five senses to explore your surroundings? For most of us, the answer is no—but when we do, a walk in the woods can go from pleasant to immersive and restorative. Forest Walking teaches you how to engage with the forest by decoding nature’s signs and awakening to the ancient past and thrilling present of the ecosystem around you.
-
-
A disappointment compared to The Hidden Life of Trees
- By Becky Rempel on 2023-10-09
Written by: Peter Wohlleben, and others
-
Butcher's Work
- True Crime Tales of American Murder and Madness
- Written by: Harold Schechter
- Narrated by: Christopher Lane
- Length: 8 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A Civil War veteran who perpetrated one of the most ghastly mass slaughters in the annals of U.S. crime. A nineteenth-century female serial killer whose victims included three husbands and six of her own children. A Gilded Age “Bluebeard” who did away with as many as fifty wives throughout the country. A decorated World War I hero who orchestrated a murder that stunned Jazz Age America.
Written by: Harold Schechter
-
The Royal Art of Poison
- Filthy Palaces, Fatal Cosmetics, Deadly Medicine, and Murder Most Foul
- Written by: Eleanor Herman
- Narrated by: Susie Berneis
- Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The story of poison is the story of power. For centuries, royal families have feared the gut-roiling, vomit-inducing agony of a little something added to their food or wine by an enemy. To avoid poison, they depended on tasters, unicorn horns, and antidotes tested on condemned prisoners. Servants licked the royal family's spoons, tried on their underpants, and tested their chamber pots. Ironically, royals terrified of poison were unknowingly poisoning themselves daily with their cosmetics, medications, and filthy living conditions.
-
-
Deadly enlightening fun
- By Roberta W on 2022-12-06
Written by: Eleanor Herman
-
The Third Wife
- A Novel
- Written by: Lisa Jewell
- Narrated by: Joe Jameson
- Length: 9 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the early hours of a summer morning, a young woman steps into the path of an oncoming bus. A tragic accident? Or suicide? At the center of this puzzle is Adrian Wolfe, a successful architect and grief-stricken widower, who, a year after his third wife's death, begins to investigate the cause. As Adrian looks back on their brief but seemingly happy marriage, disturbing secrets begin to surface. The divorces from his two previous wives had been amicable, or so it seemed; his children, all five of them, were resilient as ever, or so he thought.
-
-
Strong commentary on marital commitments.
- By Amazon Customer on 2018-08-15
Written by: Lisa Jewell
-
The Precipice
- Existential Risk and the Future of Humanity
- Written by: Toby Ord
- Narrated by: Toby Ord
- Length: 8 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This urgent and eye-opening book makes the case that protecting humanity's future is the central challenge of our time. If all goes well, human history is just beginning. Our species could survive for billions of years - enough time to end disease, poverty, and injustice, and to flourish in ways unimaginable today. But this vast future is at risk. With the advent of nuclear weapons, humanity entered a new age, where we face existential catastrophes - those from which we could never come back.
-
-
Agree on the problem; solutions are terrible
- By Keith Kuspira on 2023-10-23
Written by: Toby Ord
-
Unbroken: The Trauma Response Is Never Wrong
- And Other Things You Need to Know to Take Back Your Life
- Written by: MaryCatherine McDonald PhD
- Narrated by: MaryCatherine McDonald PhD
- Length: 5 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With Unbroken: The Trauma Response Is Never Wrong, Dr. McDonald overturns the misconceptions about trauma with the latest evidence from neuroscience and psychology—and shares tested practices and tools to help you work with your body’s coping mechanisms to accelerate healing.
-
-
Wow!
- By terri ward on 2023-05-25
Written by: MaryCatherine McDonald PhD
-
I Let Him Go
- Written by: Denise Fergus
- Narrated by: Siân Polhill-Thomas
- Length: 6 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A truly inspiring and heartbreaking book from the mother of little James Bulger - whose murder by two young boys shocked the world. On 12th February 1993, Denise's life changed forever. As she was running errands at New Strand Shopping Centre, she let go of her two-year-old son's hand to take out her purse. Denise never saw her son again. In this extraordinary and heart-wrenching audiobook comes the unflinching account of that terrible day from James Bulger's mother, Denise.
-
-
I can hear my thoughts
- By Sherry on 2023-09-20
Written by: Denise Fergus
-
The Enchanted Life
- Unlocking the Magic of the Everyday
- Written by: Sharon Blackie
- Narrated by: Fiona Reid
- Length: 11 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Enchantment. By Dr. Sharon Blackie’s definition, a vivid sense of belongingness to a rich and many-layered world, a profound and whole-hearted participation in the adventure of life. Enchantment is a natural, spontaneous human tendency - one we possess as children, but lose, through social and cultural pressures, as we grow older. It is an attitude of mind which can be cultivated: the enchanted life is possible for anyone. It is intuitive, embraces wonder, and fully engages the mythic imagination - but it is also deeply embodied in ecology, grounded in place and community.
-
-
Enchanted review
- By T Holtl on 2020-02-17
Written by: Sharon Blackie
-
The Invention of Surgery
- A History of Modern Medicine: From the Renaissance to the Implant Revolution
- Written by: David Schneider MD
- Narrated by: Peter Noble
- Length: 23 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Written by an author with plenty of experience holding a scalpel, Dr. David Schneider's in-depth biography is an encompassing history of the practice that has leapt forward over the centuries from the dangerous guesswork of ancient Greek physicians through the world-changing implant revolution of the 20th century.
-
-
Good until the end
- By Emily Holmes on 2022-12-17
Written by: David Schneider MD
What listeners say about Written in Bone
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Steven
- 2023-01-06
Fascinating and very easy to listen to.
A great read with enough scientific depth to invoke interest and great anecdotes to reinforce the science and to make it entertaining.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jan MacArthur
- 2024-11-02
Excellent on all fronts
Just finished and want to start all over again right away! I always enjoy Sue Black every time I come across her in a documentary or TV series, and it’s a real treat to listen to her read her own work. So interesting on many levels, and she’s one of the few authors who read well. Highly recommend.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ladedadixie
- 2022-11-27
Highly recommend!
Engaging and enthralling. Very well written, well narrated, and full of excellent bits of knowledge.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Michael
- 2024-11-16
on and on
if you take a drink everytime an anecdote is repeated and/or everytime the author mentions that anthropologists are the only ones who can read bones YOU WILL DIE. I did.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!