The Morbid Anatomy Anthology and Wicked Plants are my bedtime reading. My husband is getting a little nervous. They're perfect for bedtime because each chapter/essay is independent of the others and you can pick up and put down as necessary. I'm enjoying both of these books. I'm reading Wicked Plants as an e-book from my library. I wish it had illustrations or photos of the actual plants but I'm not sure that is just because it's an e-book.
Next up, I'm hoping to get to these books.
I'm really interested in the history of arsenic. (Remain calm, husband) First, because of the whole Arsenic and Old Lace story (the actual murder the movie/play is based on took place in Connecticut) and when I worked at a historic house museum there was a tiny bottle of arsenic in one of the women's bedrooms. The guides were told that women in the 19th century took arsenic to make their skin paler. I want to find out if that is true. I'm hoping I'll find out in King of Poisons: A History of Arsenic.
Caitlin Doughty is the queen of all things death these days so I can't wait to read this. Smoke Gets In Your Eyes & Other Lessons from the Crematory may make me rethink my burial plans.
Really, I consider Being Dead Is No Excuse: The Official Southern Ladies Guide to Hosting the Perfect Funeral to be simply good research. One of the most interesting funerals I ever went to was in Georgia. The 90 year old plus matriarch of the family was laid in her own bed in the family's early 1800s home for the wake. Guests mingled in the living room and kitchen eating delicious food and visited with the deceased in her bedroom. I was really quite lovely. I also have dreams of opening a combination bar/funeral home, but that's another story.
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