True Crime 1950s Style

This weekend, I ventured over to a nearby town to check out a new used bookstore that had just opened up. As I was about to exit, this odd publication caught my eye. Going against the old cliche, I typically can judge a book by its cover. I have come across a number of odd publications with no frills, just a simple faded embossed title that reveals turns out to be fascinating. And then there is is oddity.

At first, I thought it might an odd self-published play or comedy judging by the illustrations and the odd binding of this book. The sketches were not the polished work of a commercial illustrator by any means, but the 1950s aesthetic was obvious. But something is a little off about the cover..

The illustrations show a woman reaching into a medicine cabinet, a mechanic working on a car, a fair grounds or amusement park, a marsh, and a baby reaching for a sparking electrical outlet.

Ummmmm... Huh?

The back cover is even more unusual--a smoker lying in bed with a lit cigarette, a car stalled on a railroad track, and a drunk falling down a flight of stairs.

Apparently this book was not what I was expecting at all. Upon opening the pages, I came across a series of typed case studies of unusual deaths, morbid pictures take from crime scenes, and a very clinical analysis of the odd circumstances of each untimely demise. Think of the book as a CSI: No Computer Land where only a coroner could really crack a case, or figure out the true cause of death.