Customer Reviews

The Girl with the Crooked Nose: A Tale of Murder, Obsession, and Forensic Artistry

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Although the primary focus of this book, the gruesome murders of low-income young women in Mexico, is never satisfactorily resolved, the author does a thorough job of introducing a fascinating character to the criminal investigation lexicon. Frank Bender, an unusual, driven man finds his passion in recreating the facial distinctions of victims by building plaster busts from the skulls of the deceased. Making his living in advertising photography, Frank takes sculpting classes to enhance his work; an artist since childhood, Bender uses his eyes and imagination to fashion the personal characteristics, the small tics and lines of individual faces. Then unexpected opportunity: Bender is brought into the cold rooms of a local Philadelphia coroner's department where he is challenged to recreate the facial features of a murdered woman for forensic identification, case number 5233. The die is cast- Frank Bender has found his purpose, committed his life to this amazing work.

Juggling photographic assignments with the cost-ineffective busts he creates for police departments, the FBI, US Marshals and America's Most Wanted, like any artist, especially one with a righteous cause, Frank's priorities are unbalanced by the amount of time he devotes to the higher cause. While this passion puts a strain on his home life and his financial security, there is a strong element of altruism in Bender's chosen field. When victims are recognized, criminals caught through Frank's unique application of art and forensics, families are given closure and murderers are brought to justice. Certainly, Bender is an exceptional individual, self-taught, confident and generous with his time, his mission a heady one when successful, painful when circumstances fail to support the evidence he offers to further such cases.

Botha does an excellent job introducing this character, reminding me of the addictive nature of such non-fiction. Throughout the book, Frank's reputation is built case by case, as identities are validated, cold cases solved and murderers reclaimed from the lives they have rebuilt after escaping the consequences of their violent crimes. Age progression is invaluable in Bender's work, perhaps as significant as giving human likeness to the skulls he carefully sculpts. But by far the most challenging and frustrating is Bender's time in Mexico, attempting to aid authorities in solving the murders of countless young women whose bodies have been found in Juarez and Chihuahua. In spite of his meticulous recreations, a majority of the busts remain unidentified (even the Girl with the Crooked Nose), due mainly to inefficient procedures and the bureaucratic warfare of the Mexican government. Over all, Botha paints a fascinating portrait of a dedicated man who literally changed the face of forensic investigation, a fine career in public service that is significant in its impact. Luan Gaines/ 2008.

Ted Botha's book -- "The Girl With the Crooked Nose" -- is a thrilling account of the remarkable real-life adventures -- and remarkable life -- of forensic artist Frank Bender. The publication of this work fills a void that, for a long time, had been waiting to be filled.

The book succeeds on several levels. First, there is the "frame story," which concerns the mysterious disappearance and murder of hundreds of women in and around Juarez, Mexico. Bender is called in on the case and encounters a language which, after a while, becomes far more difficult for him to understand than Spanish: something mysterious, deceptive, altogether unnerving -- and dangerous. Ultimately the symbol of this convoluted and heartbreaking exploit is the Girl With the Cooked Nose, whose skull -- like those of the other murdered girls -- needs a face and a name.

On another level the book is about Frank Bender himself; and in moving back and forth between the present-day Juarez story and his biography, the fascination does not let up. This subject is in itself a valuable account on its own: his first exposure to forensics (a word he did not even know), his first (and incredibly successful) attempt to bring face to a skull and each elaborately different case thereafter, always working (like Sherlock Holmes) as a uncannily gifted "amateur" or bohemian "outsider"; the development of his approaches and all the interesting professional connections he makes as well as the macabre, touching scenarios that develop -- all these elements form an engaging catalog of one person's personal quest. To Botha's credit, the writer never depicts gore gratuitously but only as need to understand a case or the emotional reaction to a discovery.

In addition, students of forensic science will relish this book not only for the subject matter itself, of course, but for the insights into Bender's actual technique and his thought process -- his early uncertainties, his triumphs, his nightmares and his relationship with the nameless victim whose identity he must help uncover.

All in all, this is a fascinating and important work, not only because it deals with the tragic Juarez murders and with forensics but because it gives insight into the singular personality of Frank Bender. Not an easy person to profile, he is genuinely worth this kind of detailed treament.

this story is up there with Kathy Reichs novels for forensic suspense but even better it's a true story. The information about Frank Bender's life & how he self-taught himself is incredible, his concentration & sixth sense is very remarkable. I have personnally known Frank (and Jan, his wife) for over thirty years & can truly tell you that every word is true!! These two people have an amazing bond that has stood the test of time & personnel trials for thirty or more years. May I suggest that you feature this book for your readers who are interested in anthropology and/or forensic stories. It's a terrific read & again all true.

I knew I had to read this book as soon as I saw it advertised. I've had the pleasure of meeting Frank Bender and the opportunity to see him work.

Bender is a self-taught forensic artist whose work has helped identify murder victims and apprehend numerous fugitives. He sacrificed a career in commercial photography to work with law enforcement agencies around the world, a choice that has often put him in danger, jeopardized his marriage and brought him near bankruptcy at one point.

Though Bender and his work have had publicity over the years, Botha does a good job of introducing him and his fascinating technique to a wider audience. In chapters fluctuating back and forth in time he intersperses Bender's history with details of the perplexing unsolved case in which some 400 young women were murdered in Mexico.

Along the way, the author provides information on the development of facial reconstruction techniques, detailing both the American system pioneered by Wilton Krogman and the European perfected by Mikhail Gerasimov.

Another intriguing aspect of the book is how Bender, along with William Fleischer, a customs agent and polygraph expert, and Richard Walter, a criminal profiler, founded the Vidocq Society. Named for the founder of the French Surete, the organization of amateurs and professionals focuses on unsolved deaths and disappearances.

I have recently been educating myself on the women of Juarez and the surrounding areas who have been found tossed like garbage over the Mexican country side. Before this effort, however, Frank Bender was well known to me by his excellent reconstruction work since the late 70's. You can read this book several different ways-it is a story of the obsessed, driven artist who has the task of breathing life into the dead, broken and forgotten who cross his path. Or you could look at the book as an attempt to bring attention to over 400 women whose bodies have dotted the landscape in Mexico since the count began in 1993. Or you could realize the hopelessness of the task of finding justice in a country where the politicians, police and cartels are sometimes indistinguishable from one another....it is a small book that is a must read for anyone living in North America who has a conscience and an ounce of compassion.

THE GIRL WITH THE CROOKED NOSE: A Tale of Murder, Obsession, and Forensic Artistry tells the true story of forensic sculptor Frank Bender's harrowing exploits south of the border as he works to put faces on five of the skulls of the feminicidios, nearly 400 young women who were murdered around Juarez in the early 1990s. Frank's ability to reconstruct faces and give them personalities is legendary in law enforcement, but in addition to being an investigative superstar, Frank is a real character. At times the outrageous details of his personal life threaten to overshadow his brilliant sleuthing. Trust me--he's one of a kind. (He identifies himself on his voice-mail message as the "recomposer of the decomposed.") Read the book and you'll see what I mean.

I think it is a great pity that the author didn't stick to the cold hard facts of his subject, a "forensic artist," a specialist in reconstructing the faces of the dead. After all, it is a fascinating subject.

But instead, the author commits three literary sins:

1. He opens the book with a completely speculative passage about the "girl with the crooked nose's" last hours alive. He even gives dialog and the thoughts of the victim. Unless he's mastered the art of speaking to the dead, there is a word for this: fiction. It makes me wonder what else was made up in the text.

2. Based on the way the book is written, one gets the impression that the author followed his protagonist, the forensic artist, around in "real time," constantly asking him what his thoughts were. I somehow doubt that was the case, so once again I find myself wondering how much was conjecture on the author's part.

3. There are also quoted conversations in the book that made me wonder if the author's protagonist was carrying around a tape recorder. Whenever I encounter this sort of dialog I always want to know how these conversations were produced. Since the book has no endnotes, I have no idea, and I'm left to think, they are extrapolations from the protagonist's memories.

The bottom line is for me that you can mix fact in with a work of fiction and no one will criticize you for doing it. Instead, people may praise you for your research and realism. But if you do the opposite, infect a work of nonfiction with fictional material, you degrade your entire narrative and weaken your credibility.

I'm giving this book three stars because of the fascinating topic and the fact that the author writes well. And I recognize that some people don't care about what I'm complaining about here. But it is more than possible to write a good nonfiction book about a crime and not resort to the tricks the author does here. As just one example, check out this book about the Lindbergh kidnapping:

The Lindbergh Case

I bought this book because I like true crime stories; "In Cold Blood", "The Executioners Song", "The Innocent Man" etc. But this book opens with a speculative account of a murder victims last hours which left me thinking "How does the author know this". And early on in the book there is a significant factual error; a man is mentioned who has spoken with numerous serial killers, this book states that this man was the last to speak with John Wayne Gacy "before he went to the electric chair". Wait a minute, Gacy was executed by lethal injection. Not that I'm a groupie of serial killers but I remember this one because his execution was botched; the tubes inserted into Gacys arms had to be replaced and the execution tried a second time before succceeding. I verified this on-line. I feel little pity for Gacy but wow I wouldn't want to resolve myself emotionally to dying then have to do it a second time.

Anyway, what other facts are mis-stated in this book?