It always begins with a dead body. For aficionados of forensics, "CSI" or "Sherlock," or murder mysteries, "The Poisoner's Handbook," on PBS' "American Experience" on Tuesday, will provide a ...

In honor of the Ken Burns documentary on Prohibition (on which a friend of mine served as an advisor), I chose the book "The Poisoner's Handbook," by Deborah Blum. Its full title is "The Poisoner's ...

THE POISONER'S HANDBOOK: Murder and the Birth of Forensic Medicine in Jazz Age New York, by Deborah Blum. Penguin Press, 336 pp., $25.95. Think we live in a dangerous age? Consider the case of the ...

Pulitzer Prize–winning science journalist Blum (Ghost Hunters) makes chemistry come alive in her enthralling account of two forensic pioneers in early 20th-century New York. Blum follows the often ...

It always begins with a dead body. For aficionados of forensics, “CSI” or “Sherlock,” or murder mysteries, “The Poisoner’s Handbook,” on PBS’ “American Experience” on Jan. 7, will provide a ...