siena_j_p's review
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
3.25
I should start by saying that I have very complicated feelings about true crime, and they definitely colored how I read this book. As a genre, I find it to be frequently exploitative, disrespectful, and dismissive – in general, treating real-life atrocities as a source of entertainment. And this book definitely fell into that trap on occasion. Sure, stories about paleontologists trying to one-up each other are legitimately entertaining, but stories about eugenics, slavers, and Nazi scientists? Not so much. My girlfriend actually read a few pages of it and then said “I bet the author was white.” The worst example of this was a footnote that said something along the lines of “Everyone loves a Nazi villain,” which…the idea that Nazis are just bad guys with high entertainment value, not real-live people who murdered millions, is intensely uncomfortable to say the least. In other areas the author clearly took pains to clarify the awfulness of the people he wrote about, but even so, it was just unfortunate. It didn’t seem like all the chapters really belonged in the same book or deserved the same treatment. This was the main takeaway I had. The writing was fine and there were lots of interesting anecdotes and facts (I found the chapter about graverobbing and autopsies particularly interesting) but the cheerful true-crime attitude just got in the way of properly appreciating anything.
bentleyc's review
2.0
The books was well written, but did seem to feel a bit dramatized at times. I was aware of almost all of the incidents described in the book and so it didn’t feel like there was a great deal of new information. In several of the incidents, the transgressors seemed more likely to have engaged in the activities more as a consequence of both their own social factors and society at large around them. While the author acknowledges this in several places, I think I was expecting something a little different from the summary.
nesi_peepz's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.5
Super interesting and Sam Kean is such an easy read! I found myself getting lost in chapters and I feel like I learned A LOT about the history of science. Definitely recommend!
micheala's review against another edition
4.0
This was a really interesting look into 12 historical instances involving someone doing something illegal/immoral in the name of science.
I initially was just listening to the audiobook, which the narrator does a fantastic job, and thought there were a few weird points wear the author directed you to his podcast or website. However, once I flipped through the physical copy, I realized all of those were footnotes and it stopped feeling weird.
I enjoyed the way this was layed out, both in the length of each chapter as well as progressing fairly linearly with each case study.
It was interesting to see how the motives affected the perception of the crimes done in the name of science - both by the individual themselves as well as others.
If you like medical history, questions about morality in science, or just macabre history, I would suggest giving this one a go.
I initially was just listening to the audiobook, which the narrator does a fantastic job, and thought there were a few weird points wear the author directed you to his podcast or website. However, once I flipped through the physical copy, I realized all of those were footnotes and it stopped feeling weird.
I enjoyed the way this was layed out, both in the length of each chapter as well as progressing fairly linearly with each case study.
It was interesting to see how the motives affected the perception of the crimes done in the name of science - both by the individual themselves as well as others.
If you like medical history, questions about morality in science, or just macabre history, I would suggest giving this one a go.
somesubtlebutessentialway's review against another edition
dark
funny
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
4.75
Took me way too long to finish, but mostly a joy to read the entire time. So interesting, and sometimes so hard to read.
I love the way that Kean writes about these things; acknowledging both the good and the bad, and being absolutely amazing at setting up a story in an interesting and (when appropriate) a fun way. A wide variety of information, 99% of which I knew nothing about; so well-researched and well-written. Nothing I can say more! It's just really good! Sam Kean can be really funny, and his little asides are enjoyable and lighten the mood when you need them to. He also ends the entire book with a good view; giving a bit of love and hope and inspiration that's a balm for the hard stories he tells.
I love the way that Kean writes about these things; acknowledging both the good and the bad, and being absolutely amazing at setting up a story in an interesting and (when appropriate) a fun way. A wide variety of information, 99% of which I knew nothing about; so well-researched and well-written. Nothing I can say more! It's just really good! Sam Kean can be really funny, and his little asides are enjoyable and lighten the mood when you need them to. He also ends the entire book with a good view; giving a bit of love and hope and inspiration that's a balm for the hard stories he tells.
raventheclaw19's review against another edition
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
4.0
Interesting. Not exactly what I expected; more variegated in subject than I thought it would be. It centered more around a theme (immoral science) than a topic (e.g. DNA).
Altogether, it was an interesting read. It reads like a podcast transcript (featuring notes in parentheses and sarcastic comments at the end of a paragraph e.g. “yeah right”)
Kean does a great job discussing the ethics of using immoral research (see: his discussion of slavery and how it still affects scientists in the future)
Altogether, it was an interesting read. It reads like a podcast transcript (featuring notes in parentheses and sarcastic comments at the end of a paragraph e.g. “yeah right”)
Kean does a great job discussing the ethics of using immoral research (see: his discussion of slavery and how it still affects scientists in the future)
ellekeene's review
4.0
my kind of nonfiction! learned a lot, laughed a lot. engaging storytelling. lost a star for the continual advertising of his podcast, which I feel like even the worst editor would omit.
allison_reynolds's review
4.0
I've been looking for a book like this for years. The areas that lie between morality and progress can be as devastating as they are fascinating. Kean writes with equal measures of sympathy to his material and a flair for the macabre. The facts are neither dry nor sensationalized. This is a book about science for people who prefer poetry.