The Dead Beat

This book came to me by way of providence. I decided one day that I would like to read a book about obituaries. Shortly after, (voila) I came upon this book at the Boston Fine Arts Museum bookstore. More specifically, Johnson writes about the blossoming cult following obituaries have been attracting......more

I picked this book up because I liked the cover. Look at it. It’s so catchy, it almost looks like a McSweeny’s book. But it’s not. It’s almost that clever- but not quite. I wasn’t quite sure how Marilyn Johnson was going to sustain a book about obituaries for 223 pages, and the answer is she doesn’t......more

I am obituary junkie, at least I was until I started getting the NY Times which spends more time on engagements in Sunday Styles than it does the obits of ordinary people. And that's where I split from the author of this book - she prefers the obits of the famous and noted that the English papers an......more

The world of obituary writing is slightly larger than I suppose I would have imagined it, had I imagined it at all. Johnson brings to light the differences in newspapers, the styles of various writers (and their conferences!), and even talks about some of the obituary "fans." I thought the sections......more

As someone who enjoys meandering through old cemeteries, gazing at tombstones and wondering about the people who lie below, I was excited at the prospect of an entire book about obituaries. Author Marilyn Johnson focuses not so much on interesting obituaries themselves but on the craft of the creati......more