The Official Forensic Files Casebook

Rating:
Summary: excellent true crime with insite into the creative process
Review: As a long-time consumer of true crime literature and a relatively new fan of Court-TV's "Forensic Files" I have to say that I was very pleasantly surprised by both the show and this book.

I had come to expect the usual true crime fare consisting of dry, analytical, and often confusing scientific minutia tempered with salacious details evoking the lurid nature of the act, followed by an attempt to get into the mind and reasoning (if any can possibly be gleaned) of the felon.

In this book, as in the tv series, the focus remains cleanly fixed on the investigation of the crime itself. It is all about How criminals are caught. This is both refreshing and complimentary to the huge literature attempting to explain Why people commit crimes.

The author has a real talent for relating the complex nature of forensic crime investigation in a way which is accurate, compelling and accessible. Moreover, he does this without losing track of the humanity, tragic circumstance and even occasional dark humor which pervades the episodes explored on the show.

What I enjoyed especially about this book, beyond its mirroring of what I enjoy about the show, is the very interesting discussions about how the show itself is put together itself. The author is very generous in offering up details of the nuts and bolts of producing a high-volume, non-fiction television series. Something which, in my opinion, he does very well indeed.

For fans of true crime as well as those interested in the complexities of television production very high marks for this tidy volume.

Rating:
Summary: Not worth the price of the book.
Review: Forensic Files is one of my favorite shows so when I heard Paul Dowling telling Catherine Crier that this book contained stories that did not make it to the TV series, I purchased the book immediately. There was only one story in the book that I had not seen and the background to the stories was not worth the price of the book. In addition, this book must never have been proofread by anyone. It contained more grammatical and punctuation errors than any book I have ever read and that is considerable. It also had paragraphs and pages that were out of sequence. Very disappointing.

Rating:
Summary: Great content, terrible editing
Review: I love the Forensic Files TV program and very much enjoyed the book. It's a great behind-the-scenes look at one of the most compelling shows on television.
Unfortunately something went wrong with the printing of the book. Some of the pages are transposed, and it's laced with typos. I contacted the publisher and found out that a flawed 'sample' copy had been sent out to some stores.
You might want to say something when you buy the book and see if the bookstore can take care of this for you. The best way to tell is to check around pages 111, 112, and 113. They are tranposed. If you see this ask the bookstore to get you the correct copy.
The mixup is a shame, because the book is very interesting. Such a poor job by the publisher does a disservice to the authors and to a show that prides itself on detail and accuracy.



Rating:
Summary: As Good as the Show
Review: I'm an avid fan of Court TV's 'Forensic Files,' as is my entire family (including my son---who now wants to be a forensic scientist).

If you haven't seen the show, believe me, you'll be a fan after one viewing, and a quick look at this book will show you why.

While CSI and many of the other fictional crime shows sometimes defy belief --- everything on 'Forensic Files' is real. And this book has some of the fascinating real-life details that only a book can provide.

This book actually made watching the show even more compelling---which is saying something.