Many are fascinated by the forensic techniques employed at crime scenes, but few know the origin story of these now taken-for-granted methods of solving murders and other misdeeds.

Katie Winkler Dawson's American Sherlock, Forensics, and the Birth of American CSI chronicles the revolutionary contributions of Edward Oscar Heinrich who pioneered many of the forensic techniques used today. Dawson gives Heinrich his long-neglected due with an engrossing''and first full-length''account of his life and his work on some of the most perplexing and notorious cases of the first half of the twentieth century while creating a captivating portrait of a turbulent period in American history.

Winkler Dawson is a documentary filmmaker, host of the podcast 'Tenfold More Wicked' and teaches at UT-Austin. She will be joined in conversation by Janet Forest, Nantucket Atheneum program coordinator.