Barbara Butcher is one tough
lady. Only the second woman ever appointed to serve as a death investigator in
Manhattan, she helped solve crimes that could’ve calloused and darkened her
heart many times over. However, in her fascinating, down to earth memoir, What
the Dead Know, she tells riveting personal stories about investigating
homicides, suicides, and tragic accidents that moved and changed her life in
extraordinary ways.
Butcher
came to the profession through a series of unexpected, fortunate events. A teen
who suffered from depression and suicidal impulses--and experimented with drugs--she
struggled for direction after high school. A woman she worked for at a nursing
home took note of Butcher’s potential and encouraged her to become a physician
assistant. College coursework on anatomy, physiology, chemistry, pathology, and
solving diagnosis puzzles lit a fire under Butcher’s ambitions. She did work stints
in surgery and gynecology, and went on to earn a master’s degree in public
health. Just as Butcher was en route to a cushy but boring career as a hospital
administrator, her personal life unraveled. After she hit rock bottom, she
found Alcoholics Anonymous and some career counseling. Butcher was deemed best
suited for a career as a coroner.
Inquisitive
readers--especially fans of mysteries and true crime--will be captivated by Butcher’s
appealing, conversational writing style. She presents a trove of detailed,
sobering case studies of how notorious investigations--including a chilling
section about her work during 9-11--often wore her down while also expanding
her skill set and intellect, enriching the depths of her character.
What
the Dead Know: Learning About Life as a New York City Death Investigator by Barbara Butcher
Simon
and Schuster, $26.99 hardcover, 288 pages, 9781982179380
Publishing Date: June 20, 2023
To order this book on INDIEBOUND/Bookshop.Org, link HERE
NOTE:
This review is a reprint and is being posted (in a slightly different from)
with the permission of Shelf
Awareness. To
read this review as published on Shelf Awareness for the Book Trade (May 11, 2023), link HERE
A
shortened version of this same review was published on Shelf Awareness for Readers (June 23,
2023). Link HERE to
read that review.