Robert Mann (3) (1949–)

Such a fascinating subject, a provacative title and an obvious expert on the subject = one flat, tedious read. Mann spends a lot of time singing accolades for his various mentors, too much. To use a cook's adage, there is too much filler in this meatloaf and very little meat. Because Mann has had involvement in several high profile cases, Dahmer, etc., I expected to learn more, to gain a better comprehension of the crimes from his experience and expertise, but none of that in this book. Forensic Detective offers only the most cursory glimpse of the actual crimes plus a long string of praises for people I wasn't reading the book to learn about. Maybe the higher IQed CSI audience - referred to on the cover - will better appreciate the lack of depth and TV commercial style in which it is written.… (meer)

Dr. Mann's forensics memoir is a very approachable and conversational collection of cases and events that have shaped his career. Currently stationed at the Central Identification Laboratory (CIL), in Honolulu, Hawaii, a good portion of the book centers on his case work identifying soldiers remains as their remains are found decades later.

Even so, as Mann works through these anecdotes, there are high profile cases. There are the remains from Jeffrey Dahmer's boyhood home, the remains found inside a Poughkeepsie serial killer's home, the discovery of a missing young mother's remains and the very sobering call to duty when the CIL was flown in to identify victims of the 9/11 Pentagon attack. Despite the heavy material, Mann's style is airy and affable. There's an absolute respect for what he does, but he finds no reason to not make explaining his work enjoyable. That he can convey the passion he has for the tedious action of skeletal reconstruction is a testament to his skill as a storyteller.

For anyone that is a fan of police procedural dramas or mysteries, this is a fine introductory non-fiction companion piece to the truth behind the fiction.… (meer)