Road Kill

Slaughtered along our highways, roadkill may be observed regularly, but aren't likely to be given much thought. Research scientists, animal rights activists, roadkill artists, writers, ethicists and lyricists, however, are increasingly sounding the alarm. They report that we are killing the very animals we love, and are driving many of them to the brink of extinction. Detailing the death and destruction of mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and insect pollinators, this study examines the ways in which we are thus jeopardizing our own futures. Beginning in the Model T era, biologists counted the common carnage of the time--cottontails, woodchucks, and squirrels, mostly. That record-keeping continues today. Beyond the bleak statistics, zoologists are rerouting migratory paths of animals and are advocating for cat and dog companions. This book illuminates both our successes and failures in keeping animals out of harm's way and what those efforts reflect about ourselves and our capacity to care enough to alter the road ahead.

Dr. Gerald O’Connor, known to friends as “Road Kill” O’Connor is a retired professor of archaeology and anthropology from Colorado State University. During his career, he became interested in animal skeletal structure and his penchant for collecting road-killed specimens in order to practice the skill of taxidermy earned him his nickname. While watching the news one morning, he hears a report of a skull found along Interstate 90, not far from his home. There is no evidence of a body, only the skull. The only things authorities can tell is that the skull is likely that of an African American woman in her twenties and it has been there for many years. Recalling a cold case in his vast collection of notebooks, O’Connor begins his search for information about this victim. An expert witness for law enforcement throughout his career, O’Connor begins to piece together other missing persons’ cases and a pattern emerges. He concludes a serial killer has been at work for four decades. It’s time this murderer was brought to justice and Road Kill O’Connor is just the man to get the job done.

"It has been the best part of 12 years since I investigated a fatal accident and dealt with grieving relatives. It has taken me 12 years to have the strength to write about it, to put pen to paper and record what has caused me so much grief and anguish." So writes Craig Hodge, one of Victoria Police's leading investigators of fatal road accidents. A police officer for 20 years, eight of which he spent with the Accident Investigation Section (now the Major Collision Investigation Unit), Hodge attended the horrific scenes of more than 350 accidents that resulted in deaths and serious injuries. In ROAD KILL, Hodge recounts harrowing investigations and details the processes involved in finding out the causes of such tragedies, which often led to prosecutions. His story is a cautionary tale in which responsible driving messages loom large. ROAD KILL also provides a poignant account of the emotional and psychological impact such carnage has on all involved, not least of all on investigators like Hodge, who struggled at times to find a balance between being sensitive to victims and their families, while also trying to remain emotionally detached for his own sanity and wellbeing.

A fresh, realistic approach to altering one's destiny and accepting the responsibility that grows with freedom. No meaning that comes from outside of ourselves is real. The Buddahood of each of us has already been obtained. We only need to recognize it. “The most important things that each man must learn no one can teach him. Once he accepts this disappointment, he will be able to stop depending on the therapist, the guru who turns out to be just another struggling human being.” Using the myth of Gilgamesh, Siddhartha, The Wife of Bath, Don Quizote . . . the works of Buber, Ginsberg, Shakespeare, Karka, Nin, Dante and Jung . . . a brilliant psychotherapist, guru and pilgrim shares the epic tales and intimate revelations that help to shape Everyman's journey through life.

A young, handsome handyman is found dead. Clues and hunches lead Detective Captain Sam Arbuckle from the gigolos death to a hit and run accident he investigated 25 years before or was it an accident? A second look into the files sends Arbuckle from the bleak North Side of Fort Worth, to Viet Nam, to the outskirts of an eastern Oklahoma chop shop where a quarter century of revenge, schemes, and greed culminate. A colorful cast of bored, rich housewives, penny-anti thieves, drug dealers, and a duo of young, ambitious detectives challenge Arbuckle into solving one last case before retirement. His plan was retire quietly, but an unmatched fingerprint from his first case tweaks Arbuckles pride in his lifelong career record. No big deal. Just one more case to close.

An ALA Notable book An Orbis Pictus Recommended title When Heather L. Montgomery sees a rattlesnake flattened on the side of the road, her first instinct is to pick it up and dissect it--she's always wanted to see how a snake's fangs retract when they close their mouths, and it's not exactly safe to poke around in a live reptile's mouth. A wildlife researcher with a special penchant for the animals that litter the roadways, Heather isn't satisfied with dissecting just one snake. Her fascination with roadkill sets her off on a journey from her own backyard and the roadways of the American South to scientists and kids in labs and homes across the globe. From biologists who use the corpses of Tasmanian devils to investigate cures for a contagious cancer, to a scientist who discovered a whole new species of bird from a single wing left behind, to a boy rebuilding animal bodies from the bones up, to a restaurant that serves up animal remnants, Heather discovers that death is just the beginning for these creatures. This engaging narrative nonfiction is an eye-opening and irreverent look at the dead and dying animals that we pass by without a second thought--as well as a fascinating insight to the scientific research process.

A fresh, realistic approach to altering one's destiny and accepting the responsibility that grows with freedom. No meaning that comes from outside of ourselves is real. The Buddahood of each of us has already been obtained. We only need to recognize it. “The most important things that each man must learn no one can teach him. Once he accepts this disappointment, he will be able to stop depending on the therapist, the guru who turns out to be just another struggling human being.” Using the myth of Gilgamesh, Siddhartha, The Wife of Bath, Don Quizote . . . the works of Buber, Ginsberg, Shakespeare, Karka, Nin, Dante and Jung . . . a brilliant psychotherapist, guru and pilgrim shares the epic tales and intimate revelations that help to shape Everyman's journey through life.

Sunshine State trivia buff Serge A. Storms loves eliminating jerks and pests. His drug-addled partner Coleman loves cartoons. Hot stripper Sharon Rhodes loves cocaine, especially when purchased with rich dead men's money. On the other hand, there's Sean and David, who love fishing and are kind to animals -- and who are about to cross paths with a suitcase filled with $5 million in stolen insurance money. Serge wants the suitcase. Sharon wants the suitcase. Coleman wants more drugs . . . and the suitcase. In the meantime, there's murder by gun, Space Shuttle, Barbie doll, and Levi's 501s. In other words, welcome to Tim Dorsey's Florida -- where nobody gets out unscathed and untanned!