A review by cnidariar3x
The Poisoner's Handbook: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York by Deborah Blum

challenging dark informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

My favourite non-fiction I read in 2020.

I've read this twice over two years. Both times were a 4.5 for me.

I learned SO MUCH and really came to appreciate just how forensic medicine was essentially developed by two guys working on a shoestring budget against many odds. There's an appreciation for the medical system that derives from having read this book, but on the same hand, one will learn about all the

animal experimentation

that was necessary to get us to that point. It's a moral dilemma that really puts our modern privileges into perspective.

The book has several interweaving themes throughout the chapters, and if I have one criticism in the book, it can sometimes feel unfocused.

We often jump between the two scientists Gettler & Norris, to a brief history of prohibition, to the state of alcohol consumption at the time, to several notable poisoning cases.

Some chapters focus on some aspects more than others, which can be frustrating if one of the less interesting topics is given more time to shine.  

If one can handle reading about medical content, experimentation, and alcoholism, or are interested in this specific history in general, I can't recommend this book enough. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Death, and Medical content

Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Suicide, Medical trauma, and Murder

Minor: Cancer and Abortion