Working Stiff

Just two months before the September 11 terrorist attacks, Dr. Judy Melinek began her training as a New York City forensic pathologist. With her husband T.J. and their toddler Daniel holding down the home front, Melinek threw herself into the fascinating world of death investigation – performing autopsies, investigating death scenes, counseling grieving relatives. Melinek offers a firsthand account of daily life in one of America's most arduous professions, and the unexpected challenges of shuttling between the domains of the living and the dead. The body never lies – and through the murders, accidents, and suicides that land on her table, Melinek lays bare the truth behind the glamorized depictions of autopsy work on shows like "CSI" and "Law & Order" to reveal the secret story of the real morgue.