Clay and Bones, Lisa G. Bailey
Clay and Bones, Lisa G. Bailey
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Clay and Bones
My Life as an FBI Forensic Artist

Author: Lisa G. Bailey

Narrator: Christina Delaine

Unabridged: 8 hr 10 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 02/20/2024


Synopsis

Lisa Bailey never considered a career working in death until she saw the FBI job posting for a forensic artist. The idea of using her artistic skill to help victims of crime was too compelling to pass up.

Soon she was documenting crime scenes, photographing charred corpses, and digitally retouching the disembodied heads of suicide bombers. But it was facial approximation—sculpting a face from the remnants of an unidentified victim's skull—that intrigued her the most. Bailey knew that if she could capture that person's likeness in clay, she just might help them be identified, and that might help law enforcement track down their killer.

Bailey worked on hundreds of cases and grew to become a subject matter expert in the field. It was the most challenging and fulfilling work she could have imagined, and she never thought of leaving. But her life changed when she became the target of sexual discrimination and harassment. She was stunned when FBI management protected the abusers and retaliated with threats, slander, and an arsenal of lawyers. Trapped in an increasingly hostile work environment, and infuriated at the hypocrisy of the FBI's tactics, Bailey decided to fight back. Clay and Bones is a memoir with a mission, and a fascinating exploration into the surreal and satisfying work of a forensic artist.

About Lisa G. Bailey

Lisa Bailey is a retired FBI forensic artist, adjunct faculty member of the FBI Academy, and instructor of the FBI Forensic Facial Imaging Class. She has been featured prominently in major news outlets such as the Washington Post, National Public Radio, America's Most Wanted, Dateline NBC, and A&E Real Crime. Bailey and her forensic art also appear in Mental Floss, Medium, and the National Museum of Health and Medicine.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Blaine on June 03, 2024

From the book cover to the story, this is one memoir that everyone should take the time to read. The author, Lisa Bailey, was one of the first female forensic artists at the FBI, and she delivers a powerful look into both her profession as well as the many issues that surrounded her lengthy employme......more

Goodreads review by Wendy Darling on April 02, 2024

Forensics is a fascinating field, and certainly the idea of reading about an artist using her skill to craft skulls to reconstruct a damaged or projected face is enticing. Those parts of this book are so interesting, and I loved the author's discussion of her case files and actual work experiences. A......more

Goodreads review by Rachel (TheShadesofOrange) on July 28, 2024

3.0 Stars This is a memoir that explores the career of an FBI forensic artist. I found those parts fascinating and I wished she had dived into more detail. The novel was a very heavy focus on the terrible workplace toxicity and corruption she experienced. It was sad to read what she gad gone through.......more

Goodreads review by Savannah on February 14, 2024

This book was fantastic. It painted a picture of one of the first woman forensic artist in the FBI and the abuse she went through with her superiors. The book was part science and art, where she described her job in detail and how she sculped faces of deceased victims or missing people and how she a......more

Goodreads review by Debbie on February 04, 2024

This book didn’t gel with me. It was a strange mix of forensic cases and the author’s journey fighting the FBI on multiple bullying incidents. The two themes didn’t work for me on the narrative. Thank you to #netgalley and the publisher for a DRC......more