Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: And Other Lessons from the Crematory

by Caitlin Doughty | Biographies & Memoirs |
ISBN: 0393351904 Global Overview for this book
Registered by wingwaterfallingwing of Rockledge, Florida USA on 1/19/2018
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3 journalers for this copy...
Journal Entry 1 by wingwaterfallingwing from Rockledge, Florida USA on Friday, January 19, 2018
trade-size paperback.

from the back cover:
Armed with a degree in medieval history and a flair for the macabre, Caitlin Doughty took a job at a crematory and turned a fascination with death into her life's work. She cared for bodies of every color, shape, and affliction, and became an intrepid explorer in the world of the dead. In this best-selling memoir, brimming with gallows humor and vivid characters, she marvels at the gruesome history of undertaking and relates her unique coming-of-age story with bold curiosity and mordant wit.

An informative read.

Journal Entry 2 by wingwaterfallingwing at Raleigh, North Carolina USA on Tuesday, January 23, 2018

Released 6 yrs ago (1/23/2018 UTC) at Raleigh, North Carolina USA

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Saw this on your Wish List.

Journal Entry 3 by wingGoryDetailswing at Nashua, New Hampshire USA on Monday, January 29, 2018
The wishlist book arrived safely today - many thanks! I've wanted to read this one for some time - it looks really good!

Later: How could I not love a book that opens "A girl always remembers the first corpse she shaves"? The author describes the nitty-gritty of daily work in a small Oakland CA crematory, with attention to the details, her co-workers, and the many and varied clients (living and dead). She touches on the history of modern burial practices, including the shift from public viewings of the dead to embalming to cremation to "green burial". The author describes her own shifts in ideas, too, from an interest in the existing funeral industry to a hope that she could encourage more direct involvement in the preparation of the dead by family and friends, a way to acknowledge death and loss...

Informative, entertaining, fascinating!

I don't want to forget her dedication up front:

"To my dearest friends
So supportive, so gracious
A morbid haiku."

[For more interesting reading about what happens to bodies, check out Mary Roach's Stiff.]

Journal Entry 4 by wingGoryDetailswing at Nashua, New Hampshire USA on Tuesday, February 6, 2018

Released 6 yrs ago (2/6/2018 UTC) at Nashua, New Hampshire USA

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

I'm sending this to BCer NancyNova in Pennsylvania, as part of the US/Canada wishlist tag game. Enjoy!

*** Released for the 2018 Keep Them Moving release challenge. ***

*** Released for the 2018 Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes release challenge. ***

Journal Entry 5 by wingNancyNovawing at Lansdale, Pennsylvania USA on Sunday, February 11, 2018
checking in to the ABC TBR shelf. Thanks!

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