Customer Reviews

Body of Knowledge: One Semester of Gross Anatomy, the Gateway to Becoming a Doctor

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I have to confess that I originally picked up this book to satisfy an intrinsically human morbid fascination with death, and what happens to bodies afterward. In the end, this book did much more than that.

BODY OF KNOWLEDGE records the myriad of emotions experienced by four main characters, all first-year medical students at the New Jersey Medical School, as they struggle through the notoriously difficult course mandatory for all aspiring physicians, Gross Anatomy. These four students were assigned to each other as lab partners throughout the entire course, sharing one cadaver to work on. Although the identity of the cadaver remained anonymous to the students, Giegerich gives us an important glimpse into the life of the person who chose to donate his body to science, helping the readers know him as much more than just a science project.

Having no involvement with the medical profession, this book allowed me a rare glimpse into the trials and tribulations faced by would-be doctors as they slave through medical school's toughest course. It also demystified the medical profession, enabling me to see physicians as people who are not so different from you and me save for their extra knowledge of the workings of the human body. For those who have dreams of going to medical school someday, this book also provides great encouragement when you discover the obstacles faced by the various characters prior to being accepted into NJMS.

Most importantly, after reading this book, I have nothing but the utmost respect for those who have willed their bodies to science, so that future generations may benefit from the knowledge gained. Considering all the things done to their bodies in a gross anatomy lab, being a donor is, in the words of one of the characters in the book, the ultimate "selfless act".

Steve Giegerich has written a book about a subject matter not only fascinating and mysterious but for some bordering on the gruesome and macabre. He takes us along with four first year medical students as they journey through the Medical Gross and Developmental Anatomy course and lab at the University of Medicine and Dentistry, Newark.

The book focuses on the four students who work at the same lab table and upon Lewis, the cadaver they have been provided to dissect. Despite the difficulty of learning to identify tissues, organs, veins and nerves, muscles and bones, they must also overcome their innate fear and resistance to dissect a fellow human. To make it easier for them, the identity of the cadaver isn't given to the students. However, readers are introduced to Lewis and learn about his life and personality and the human qualities and characteristics that made him unique and special, more than merely a lab subject. Even though the students don't know the specifics about Lewis, most seem to develop a profound respect for the person who has been so generous by donating his body to science. In fact, by the end of the semester, each student has developed a personal relationship and enduring memories of their experiences with Lewis, culminating in a formalized good-bye to this special person.

For the reader, this unique book provides insight into the rigors of medical school and creates a different perspective on the meaning of "donating your body to science". It also traces the origins and history of dissection and of the illustrations used in the ATLAS OF HUMAN ANATOMY and GRANT'S DISSECTOR. Most importantly, BODY OF KNOWLEDGE helps the reader gain an understanding and respect for the generous people who donate their bodies so others can learn. For those reasons this book is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Most students finish any experimentation with physiology with a high school biology course: Body Of Knowledge focuses on four medical students who enter an anatomy class in which they must dissect a human cadaver. Narration of these students' school lives and challenges blend with personal histories and accounts of what it takes to dissect a human body in this revealing account.

Started reading this book in Borders Book Store and I couldn't put it down. Great reading, moves quickly, highly recommended!...

Journalist Steve Giegerich's has achieved a riveting piece of reportage in the "Body of Knowledge." The reporter examines the lives of four Newark University of Medicine students through a semester of Medical Gross and Developmental Anatomy (GA), the hurdle medical students must traverse to become doctors. One will keenly feel the mental, physical and spiritual toll experienced by the medical students dissecting the cadaver. The inclusion of the student's background and the life of the cadaver, known just as No. 3426 to the students, but reveled to be Tom Lewis, a devout Roman Catholic, is an effective addition to the book due to the humane tone gleaming off the page.

Giegerich's journey through the five areas of (GA), head and neck, thorax, abdomen, and upper and lower extremities is a fascinating and enthralling view of our complex body. For the most part, medical jargon does not overwhelm the text. Generally, there are no gratuitous scenes that aim to shock. However, the faint of heart may want to skip certain sections, most notably a vividly described craniotomy.

In short, Giegerich succeeds in bringing the path of would-be doctors alive with detailed, honest writing. After reading "Body of Knowledge," one may feel a deeper appreciation for the medical students who have taken the leap.

Bohdan Kot

The first third of this book is unreadable. I thought the book would be a treat for me, since I love anatomy and dissection. Not so! The author did apparently stick his head into the anatomy lab once, because he noted the prevalent odor. But he made no effort to learn the vocabulary of anatomy. The reader is left to continually make mental corrections of his stupid errors. In fact, even his use of everyday vocabulary and grammer is so erratic it makes reading a struggle which eventually defeated me. His substitution of "equanimity" in a phrase that called for "equality" is just one of an overwhelming number of such distractions. Giegerich does capture the personalities of the living occupants of the anatomy lab, so it's a shame he can't write. The blurb says he is a journalist and journalism teacher: I devoutly hope his field is photojournalism since reading his slapdash writing is so very laborious. I don't know anything about the rest of the book. I'm retired, and I don't have to work this hard anymore. -- Mary, R.N., B.S., CFNP

I picked this book up and was fascinated from the first paragraph -- that's not to say that everyone will be. Indeed, some readers may be shocked and dismayed at the explicit detail offered and the emotional twists and turns that the medical students encounter as they dissect the human body assigned to them.

However, there's a factual, but caring, human interest element to this book that will pull many reader into the narrative. The author has obviously used his accomplished journalism skills to interview the students, medical school faculty, families and lab staff involved in the Gross Anatomy course and then carefully wove the stories -- along with an enormous amount of background research -- together into this exceptional chronological narrative.

For three and a half months, readers are given the opportunity to observe and listen to four students assigned to table 26 and their classmates and faculty in the Gross Anatomy Lab of Newark's New Jersey Medical School. One has a sense that the reader is standing right next to them as they deal with the physical, mental, and psychological challenges of dissecting a corpse that was once a living human being. It's not a morbid story at all; if anything, it's a story that honors the sanctity of human life and explains the necessity of medical students learning as much as possible about our bodies -- through dissection -- so they can go forth and heal others.

The author, Steve Giegerich, is a reporter who has served as an adjunct instructor at Rutgers and Columbia University's journalism schools and was an Associated Press National Reporting Team finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for feature writing in 1998.

Highly recommended for public, academic and medical libraries.

R. Neil Scott

Middle Tennessee State University

Reealistic portrayal of medical school. the importance of donating your body for research. An intimate look into the life of a person who did just that and the family he left behind.

I loved this novel. It takes you through the disection of an entire cadavar. It balances the students need to learn while maintaining the cadavar's humanity by relating to you who he was and who loved him. Excellent book, I would recommend it to anyone.

Body of Knowledge is a clever book; clever in the sense that it interweaves different stories with a common thread -- that being the art and science of Gross Anatomy. The reader is introduced to the students, teachers, staff, and most importantly, the man who would become the specimen, or more fittingly, the body of knowledge. It is certainly replete with several variations of the same theme: the unselfish act of sharing one's body to enrich one's mind. In exploring this theme, it is apparent that the author's aim is to show the reader how the simple act of dissecting flesh and bone can unlock the life history of the deceased. In doing so, the students are reminded that what is now a specimen was once a man who had lived, loved, laughed, cried, celebrated, and suffered...essentially, the man had been resurrected.

However, the theme does grow repetitive and tiresome after the first three chapters, and I often felt as though the author tried too hard to spell out what is inherently obvious to me as the reader. All in all, the book is a nice read, though very dry at times. The writing can be clumsy, and the transition from one story to another often does not flow smoothly. Alas, it's a good starter book for anyone interested in the art and science of death. It's often given as a gift to matriculating medical students by their medical colleges during the illustrious white-coat ceremony. If you can find a med student who has the book, just borrow it from him. Chances are he hasn't read it anyway.