Library

Browse and search novels

1 novel found

Death in America: Revised Edition (Translated Documentary)

(uk) Jessica Mitford

190K0

Death is a business, full of tricks. A classic work of the 20th century "dung-sucking" journalism movement, it sparked public opinion and exclaimed, "Can you afford to die?" She single-handedly promoted relevant legislation, influenced the arrangements for Kennedy's funeral, and changed American funeral values. She was selected into Time Magazine's top 100 nonfiction works and was the British female writer who had the greatest influence on J. K. Rowling. Only Jessica Mitford's sensitivity and intelligence could turn this exposé of America's modern funeral industry into a book that is both serious and entertaining. When first published in 1963, this landmark investigative journalism became a bestseller and spurred legislative protection. Before her death in 1996, Mitford revised and updated her classic study to reexamine new trends facing American death, including the success of professional lobbyists in Washington, the skyrocketing cost of cremation, telemarketing of prepaid graves, and the impact of the funeral industry monopoly now dominated by multinational corporations.