The Bone Detectives

The Bone Detectives
by Donna M Jackson

Little, Brown and Company, 1996








Genre:  Non-fiction, Science

Honors:  ALA Best Book, IRA Teacher's Choice, Junior Library Guild Selection, School Library Journal "Best Books of 1996" list, NCSS - CBC Notable Children's Book in the Field of Social Science, NSTA - CBC Outstanding Science Trade Book for Children, New York Public Library "100 titles for Reading and Sharing", Chicago Public Library "Best of the Best" list, Society of School Librarians Best Book in Social Studies grades 7-12, Pennsylvania School Librarians Association "Best of the Best Top Ten Books for Young Adults", Children's Literature Award list

Review:  This is an uncomplicated yet fascinating look at the approach taken by forensic anthropologists in their endeavors to detect clues about humans through the study of their bones. The book utilizes pictures to show the methods employed by these anthropologists when 'reading' bones in order to assist juvenile readers in understanding this specialty. This work also portrays the invaluable help that forensic anthropologists give to police in solving mysteries related to unidentified human remains.

Opinion:  As a "Bones" television series fan, this book appealed directly to me, albeit a juvenile non-fiction piece. I found that the author did a fantastic job in interspersing a detective mystery plot with factual accounts, and additional factual pages relevant to the topic at hand. Although a somewhat gruesome topic, the book dealt with the matter in a sophisticated yet understandable way.

Ideas:  This book would fit well into a science course on anthropology or in a course that deals with understanding police and detective work. Due to the heavy nature of the topic of deceased humans, it would probably speak well to an older age set of tweens.