Featured Book for Thursday, June 30, 2005
NONFICTION/FUNERAL CUSTOMS/COOKING
Death Warmed Over: Funeral Food, Rituals, and Customs from Around the World
by Lisa Rogak (Ten Speed Press, ISBN 1580085636, $19.95)
Not as intentionally funny as the recent Being Dead is No Excuse, this book provides its own delights by surveying funeral customs across the planet. Here's one example from the book:
To foreigners, funerals in Jamaica must look like outright celebrations, in part because the natives are deathly afraid of ghosts. I'll explain: Many Jamaicans believe that the good soul of a deceased person automatically travels to Africa immediately after death, while a bad soul tends to stick around, languishing around cotton trees on the island and generally bringing negative energy to those still alive. Therefore, not only is a raucous, celebratory wake supposed to celebrate the life of the deceased, but if the bad soul is inclined to hang around, the good cheer will essentially disable the evil, creating a relatively passive ghost...Some Jamaicans also place several johnnycakes - the original term was journey cake - in the casket with the deceased just before burial to make sure the soul has enough food for the journey.
Rogak then provides a recipe for Johnnycake to complete the cultural picture with a food item you can make for your own delights (or funerals). The french flaps on this paperback make it a great gift, whether seriously or for fun, and the alphabetical listings include over 75 cultures, past and present.
Death Warmed Over: Funeral Food, Rituals, and Customs from Around the World
by Lisa Rogak (Ten Speed Press, ISBN 1580085636, $19.95)
Not as intentionally funny as the recent Being Dead is No Excuse, this book provides its own delights by surveying funeral customs across the planet. Here's one example from the book:
To foreigners, funerals in Jamaica must look like outright celebrations, in part because the natives are deathly afraid of ghosts. I'll explain: Many Jamaicans believe that the good soul of a deceased person automatically travels to Africa immediately after death, while a bad soul tends to stick around, languishing around cotton trees on the island and generally bringing negative energy to those still alive. Therefore, not only is a raucous, celebratory wake supposed to celebrate the life of the deceased, but if the bad soul is inclined to hang around, the good cheer will essentially disable the evil, creating a relatively passive ghost...Some Jamaicans also place several johnnycakes - the original term was journey cake - in the casket with the deceased just before burial to make sure the soul has enough food for the journey.
Rogak then provides a recipe for Johnnycake to complete the cultural picture with a food item you can make for your own delights (or funerals). The french flaps on this paperback make it a great gift, whether seriously or for fun, and the alphabetical listings include over 75 cultures, past and present.
posted by All4Word at 9:36 AM
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