From scary to heartwarming and hilarious, an assortment of behind-the-scenes, true stories about life as an undertaker. 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, … 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.
Praise for Mortuary Confidential
“As unpredictable and lively as a bunch of drunks at a New Orleans funeral.” —Joe R. Lansdale, author of Moon Lake
“Sick, funny, and brilliant! I love this book.” —Jonathan Maberry, author of Ink
“McKenzie and Harra keep us reading because these true mortuary tales are poignant—and suddenly, gaspingly, in-your-face funny.” —Booklist
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Very interesting
A tragicomedic look at the life of those who compassionately serve the dead and their loved ones.
Funny, even for such a serious subject
This was a very entertaining and educational book on the undertaker profession
It was an easy read. Each chapter a story of its own. Some better written than others.
Interesting info about the mortuary world which , interestingly, coincided with some current news stories. I’m glad I read it for fun and relaxation
It was boring and slow.
Very boring. Had to force myself to finish, kept thinking it’s gonna get better, but it didn’t. Was not at all close to being as entertaining as was billed in ad for book.
This was a fun and interesting read. Gives you a glimpse of funeral home life.
Entertaining, humerous stories about what happens when working with dead bodies. Dark humour, but we’re only human. Very enjoyable.
Trite and poorly written…
Not nearly as funny as it could have been. Kind of sad actually. Needed better editing.
An odd oil on an odd subject.
Interesting, but I expected stories to be like what my husband tells of his father’s funeral home. Burial site family fights over flowers or children, misplaced bodies, radically different funeral rites…..
Anecdotes from funeral directors.
Not as interesting as I thought it would be.
Very enlightening about the funeral business!
Not as interesting as I thought it might be. A little slow
Neither as interesting or as funny as I had hoped. The writing was quite dreary.
Nice little vignettes of what it is like to be an undertaker. Some were touching, some were funny, some were making me thankful that I wasn’t in that situation but that someone else could write about it. An interesting, fast, fun read.
Bad writing, boring content, not funny in the least… couldn’t finish after the first 5 stories