The authors discuss the processes of decay and look at the myths surrounding the preservation of the famous (such as Lenin, Abraham Lincoln and Eva Peron). They go on to discuss bodies preserved in bogs and how they came to be there, and examine one of the oldest methods of preservation - mummification - looking not only at the famous ancient Egyptian examples but also the earliest-known mummies of the Chinchorro people from South America, as well as others from Mexico, China and Europe. They also look at the preservation of bodies as a result of freezing and bodies preserved in outline form, such as those of Pompeii and Sutton Hoo, as well as discussing ethical issues such as preservation, exhumation and research on preserved bodies. The book ends with an examination of modern preservation methods and humanity's perennial search for immortality through techniques such as cryonics, cloning, DNA and suspended animation.