February 18, 2021

REVIEW: This Party’s Dead: Grief, Joy and Spilled Rum at the World’s Death Festivals by Erica Buist

JayneBook Reviews / C+ Reviewsdeath / England / funeral / Indonesia / Japan / Madagascar / Mexico / multicultural / Nepal / non-fiction / Sicily / Thailand / USA3 Comments

Journalist Erica Buist travels to seven death festivals around the world (Nepal, Madagascar, Indonesia, Sicily, Japan, Mexico and New Orleans) in search of better attitudes towards death After the death of her father-in-law, journalist Erica Buist decided to travel to seven death festivals around the world, in an attempt to ... more >

January 16, 2021

REVIEW: In Case You Get Hit by a Bus by Abby Schneiderman, Adam Seifer, and Gene Newman

JayneB Reviews / Book Reviewsdeath / funeral / non-fiction / organization / Organization or the Lack Thereof2 Comments

A step-by-step program for getting your life in order, so you’re prepared for the unexpected. The odds of getting hit by a bus are 495,000 to 1. But the odds that you’re going to die some day? Exactly. Even the most disorganized among us can take control of our on- ... more >

February 13, 2020

REVIEW: Do I Have to Wear Black to a Funeral? by Florence Isaacs

JayneB Reviews / Book Reviewsdeath / etiquette / funeral / non-fiction7 Comments

Everything you ever wanted to know about funeral etiquette but were afraid to ask. When is attending a funeral or memorial service “a must,” and when is it optional? Can a eulogy be funny? Can I scatter my brother’s ashes in the backyard? Should I place a death notice or ... more >

February 13, 2020

REVIEW: Will My Cat Eat My Eyeballs?: Big Questions from Tiny Mortals About Death by Caitlin Doughty

JayneB Reviews / Book Reviewsdeath / funeral / non-fiction4 Comments

Best-selling author and mortician Caitlin Doughty answers real questions from kids about death, dead bodies, and decomposition. Every day, funeral director Caitlin Doughty receives dozens of questions about death. The best questions come from kids. What would happen to an astronaut’s body if it were pushed out of a space ... more >

July 22, 2019

REVIEW: Five Wakes and a Wedding by Karen Ross

JayneBook Reviews / C+ Reviewsbusiness / Contemporary / death / England / First-Person / funeral / London / UndertakerNo Comments

Undertaker Nina Sherwood is full of good advice. For example, never wear lip gloss when you’re scattering ashes. Nina is your average 30-year-old with a steady job, a nice home – and dead bodies in her basement. As an undertaker, she often prefers the company of the dead to the ... more >