"The Untold Story of American Funeral and Mourning Traditions
Why do we embalm the deceased? Why are funerals so expensive? Is there a reason coffins are shaped the way they are? When—and why—did we start viewing the deceased?
Ceremonies for honoring the departed are crucial parts of our lives, but few people know where our traditional practices come from—and what they reveal about our history, culture, and beliefs about death.
In Last Rites, author Todd Harra takes you on a fascinating exploration of American customs around death, burial, and remembrance, including:
• Influences for American rituals—from medieval Europe, the Roman Empire, and ancient Egypt
• When mourning fell out of fashion—and how George Washington’s passing brought it back
• Abraham Lincoln’s landmark funeral and its widespread impact
• How technology, religion, media, and even grave robbers have shaped our traditions
• Unknown soldiers—how warfare influenced funeral and bereavement practices … and vice versa
• The future of our death rites—mushroom suits, green burial, body donation, flameless cremation, home funerals, and more
The rich story of the American funeral is one of constant evolution. Whether you’re planning a funeral service or are simply intrigued by the meaning behind American burial practices, Last Rites is an informative and compelling exploration of the history—and future—of the ceremonies we use to say farewell to those who have departed this world."
"When the casket reached the front of the sanctuary, there was a loud cracking sound as the bottom fell out. And with a thump, down came Father Iggy.
From shoot-outs at funerals to dead men screaming and runaway corpses, undertakers have plenty of unusual stories to tell—and a special way of telling them.
In this macabre and moving compilation, funeral directors across the country share their most embarrassing, jaw-dropping, irreverent, and deeply poignant stories about life at death's door. Discover what scares them and what moves them to tears. Learn about rookie mistakes and why death sometimes calls for duct tape.
Enjoy tales of the dearly departed spending eternity naked from the waist down and getting bottled and corked—in a wine bottle. And then meet their families—the weepers, the punchers, the stolidly dignified, and the ones who deliver their dead mother in a pickup truck.
If there's one thing undertakers know, it's that death drives people crazy. These are the best 'bodies of work' from America's darkest profession."
"With humor and heart, Over Our Dead Bodies does for the undertaking profession what Mary Roach's Stiff did for cadavers, and, like Caitlin Doughty's Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs? gives us permission to embrace our morbid curiosity. From the authors of Mortuary Confidential.
Not knowing what to do, I sat on the church steps and waited. As the gravity of my failure began to well up in me, I began to cry . . .
I HAD LOST THE HEARSE!
From a dysfunctional family who turn their mother's wake into a full-blown riot, to funeral crashers looking for free meals, to a horse-drawn hearse taking the dearly departed for the ride of their afterlife, these accounts from actual undertakers will have you laughing, thinking, and gasping in disbelief. A literal graveyard of wild coincidences, slapstick humor, and touching moments, Over Our Dead Bodies explores the lighter side of the dead, the living, and the lone undertaker who has to make it all go as planned—even if it doesn't."
