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The Italian Boy: A Tale of Murder and Body Snatching in 1830's London
The Italian Boy A Tale of Murder and Body Snatching in 1830's London
Author: Sarah Wise
Describes the 1831 murder of a young vagrant and the sale of his body to a London medical college, a case that led to the arrest of his killers, "resurrection men" who acted to satisfy the demand for fresh cadavers for the study of human anatomy.
ISBN-13: 9780965912938
ISBN-10: 0965912930
Publication Date: 2004
Pages: 311
Rating:
  • Currently 2.6/5 Stars.
 5

2.6 stars, based on 5 ratings
Publisher: Metropolitan Books
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover
Members Wishing: 0
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

mrsb avatar reviewed The Italian Boy: A Tale of Murder and Body Snatching in 1830's London on + 78 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
I am one that WILL NOT stop reading a book ... but I must say that this book tested me to the very brink!! I had an extremely difficult time getting into this book and even understanding it. It is written with a lot of old flowery words that are strung together and end up being a wee bit confusing. I found myself rereading the same sentence over and over again and still not comprehending what I read, so I'd have to go back and reread the entire paragraph and then finally giving up and moving on.

This isn't a book of fiction, like I thought it was ... it is all about the true crime that took place. BUT, it doesn't seem to be just about this crime and I think that it actually gets lost in all of the other bits of information that is contained within the book, and then it's like the author then tosses in bits about the actual crime.

I also found myself going back and forth because there are LOADS and LOADS of footnotes that offer more information about what was written ... which, in itself was difficult to believe ... and then forgetting where I was or what I had just been reading. This book read more to me like a school book than a book for enjoyment. HTH ...
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reviewed The Italian Boy: A Tale of Murder and Body Snatching in 1830's London on + 88 more book reviews
This book was not what I expected. The focus is more on the minutiae of life in 1830s London and less about the case itself.


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