Death Warmed Over: Funeral Food, Rituals, and Customs from Around the World

Whether it's because food helps survivors cope with loss or because people want to send their dead off with some nourishment for their journey or because""there's no better way to prove you're alive... than by eating,"" the practice of feasting after a funeral has become commonplace in most cultures. In this volume, Rogak, who sells sympathy cards for pet owners and has written over 25 books, describes the rituals of more than 100 ethnic, cultural and religious groups. Arranging her odd collection alphabetically by culture--from""African American"" to""Zoroastrianism""--Rogak gives a one-page explanation and a recipe for each culture. Some of the dishes are common and not necessarily associated with death, such as Italian Antipasto, while others sound quite morbid, like Tibetan Sweet People Cookies (which call for chocolate-covered gummy people). Though hardly scholarly, this slim volume is amusingly informative.