Harvard Skull Fiasco
3.5 stars
A funny, satirical look behind the scenes of Harvard.

This is a pretty funny, goofy book. Shea moved to the U.S. from Australia to avoid marrying a girl that had their life completely planned out. Lacking any ambition other than to become a world-renowned jewel thief, he stumbles into a job in the IT department of Harvard’s medical library, home of the famous skull of Phineas Gage. Shea is certain that stealing this artifact could be the first step on his quest to become a career criminal. In fact, Shea believes this is such a great first step that he’s shared his idea with at least 37 of his co-workers. 

The book opens with Shea certain that he’s going to be arrested. He knows this will be a problem because he has a Pathological Problem with Authority and a pathological inability to lie. When his supervisor Octavia and colleague Wendell begin asking questions, he decides he needs to explain everything from the beginning – if only they would stop interrupting.

Told in short chapters that alternate between explaining how he ended up at Harvard and how the skull went missing, the author takes the reader on a rambling, funny journey through Shea’s chaotic mind and life. At times the rambling, free association gets to be a bit much, but overall, this is an entertaining book.

I received a free copy of this book from Book Sirens in exchange for an honest review.