Lay Them to Rest

The Book in 1 Sentence

A book that explains in the most basic terms, the process to identify John and Jane Does that have been lost to the world of cold cases.

Brief Review

This was an outstanding book and I applaud Laurah Norton for her ability to bring a lay mans understanding to an extremely technical process. Follow her as she works with her friend to solve a cold case from 30 years ago where the only item they have of the decedent is a head.

Why I Read this book

I have been running through books about serial killers and while that has been somewhat interesting to interesting at times depending on the book, but what I have felt the books have missed is the humanity of the victims. This book brought some faith back to humanity that there are people working to solve these cold cases. It is a nice feeling to hear passion in bring peace to the dead.

In-Depth Review (Favorite Quotes)

This book was so good and fascinating. I was concerned that it would be more technical than narrative, but I was completely wrong. The author is a podcast producer and scriptwriter and that skill is what brings this book to life.

I am struggling to provide a clear description of the book without giving away the story because that is what this book is about. Providing stories to those that don't have one. This book does such a wonderful job of talking about how the process of identifying remains and placing them with missing persons.

This process covers the standard forensics report, but also the anthropologist review, victim sketches and mock-ups, DNA processing, and genealogy examinations. I am sure that I am missing something important, but in the story of identifying the decedent in this story, these are the processes that stuck in my mind. However, once all of that is done, that hardest part starts. Figuring out what happened without the introduction of conspiracy.

How my life / behavior / thoughts / ideas have changed as a result of reading the book.

I think everyone should latch onto a cause that is outside their norm that can help the world and this one might be it for me. I have never head about the "Doe Project" or the number of non-profit organizations that work to solve cold cases of missing individuals, but now that I know they exist I feel there has to be something I can do.

Rating

I was super impressed with this book and her story telling. Never once did I feel that I was lost in technical conversation or overwhelmed by that since of "Scientist Only" conversation. Speaking that I also listened to this on Audible and she read the book. Her ability to discuss and help you digest the content is outstanding. I was always excited to go for my run/walk to listen to this. This is an easy 9.

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