Overview
āYou hold in your hands a treasure map, a gentle, sly, and poignant presence leading us to places in America and in our lives that have been hiding in plain sight. This tale is about cemeteries, but itās really about how beautiful is life.ā ā#1 New York Times bestselling author Doug Stanton
The summer before his senior year in college, Greg Melville worked at the cemetery in his hometown, and thanks to hour upon hour of pushing a mower over the grassy acres, he came to realize what a rich story the place told of his town and its history. Thus was born Melvilleās lifelong curiosity with how, where, and why we bury and commemorate our dead.
Melvilleās Over My Dead Body is a lively (pun intended) and wide-ranging history of cemeteries, places that have mirrored the passing eras in history but also have shaped it. Cemeteries have given birth to landscape architecture and famous parks, as well as influenced architectural styles. Theyāve inspired and motivated some of our greatest poets and authorsāEmerson, Whitman, Dickinson. Theyāve been used as political tools to shift the countryās discourse and as important symbols of the United Statesā ambition and reach.
But they are changing and fading. Embalming and burial is incredibly toxic, and while cremations have just recently surpassed burials in popularity, theyāre not great for the environment either. Over My Dead Body explores everything about cemeteriesāhistory, sustainability, land use, and moreāand what it really means to memorialize.
Includes Black-and-White Photographs
Locales visited in Over My Dead Body
Shawsheen Cemetery ā Bedford, Massachusetts; the 1607 burial ground ā Historic Jamestowne, Virginia; Burial Hill ā Plymouth, Massachusetts; Colonial Jewish Burial Ground ā Newport, Rhode Island; Monticelloās African American graveyard ā Charlottesville, Virginia; Mount Auburn Cemetery ā Cambridge, Massachusetts; Green-Wood Cemetery ā Brooklyn, New York; Laurel Grove Cemetery ā Savannah, Georgia; Sleepy Hollow Cemetery ā Concord, Massachusetts; Central Park ā New York, New York; Gettysburg National Cemetery ā Gettysburg, Pennsylvania; Arlington National Cemetery ā Arlington, Virginia; Woodlawn Cemetery ā Bronx, New York; Boothill Graveyard ā Tombstone, Arizona; Forest Lawn ā Glenwood, California; the Chapel of the Chimes ā Oakland, California; Hollywood Forever Cemetery ā Los Angeles, California; West Laurel Hillās Natureās Sanctuary ā Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
This book title, Over My Dead Body (Unearthing the Hidden History of America's Cemeteries) - 9781419754869, ISBN: 9781419754869, by Greg Melville, published by Harry N. Abrams (October 17, 2023) is available in paperback. Our minimum order quantity is 25 copies. All standard bulk book orders ship FREE in the continental USA and delivered in 4-10 business days.
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