The Undertaker's Daughter by Kate Mayfield
There's always a reason I'm drawn to certain books with unusual titles or captivating covers. The Undertaker's Daughter brought forward a memory when I was a teenager. I had a very good friend, Georgia, whose parents had a vacation home on a lake in a small town in central Ohio. Every weekend I went with her to water ski, swim and cruise down main street on Saturday night. We were 16, so of course boys were also in the mix.
One boy we met was the undertaker's son. The family lived upstairs and the funeral home, downstairs. He gave us a tour of the embalming room. I remember the walls being painted that old hospital green, a stainless steel table in the corner and hoses neatly wrapped up in even circles hanging on the wall. Just like Kate, the author of this book, it creeped me out.
Kate and her family move to a small southern town so her father can run a funeral home. Every time the phone rings, they know someone has died. That means they must stay upstairs and be quiet until the viewing and funeral are over. That's a difficult task for a family hiding enough secrets to fill all the coffins in the showroom downstairs.
What I found intriguing about this story is not so much the business of death but about living life with the hand we're dealt. Much of this story is about Kate as a child. It's not until later in her life does she learn about her father's affairs and drinking habits. Her sister is said to be moody and in reality is severely bi polar. The family's black maid cooks for them but must eat all her own meals alone. Kate's first boyfriend is black which she knows must be kept secret or her family would be destroyed.
I didn't view this memoir as a story about death, but one about racial discrimination, mental illness, alcoholism. For Kate these things were swept under the carpet. Not until she became an adult did she begin to understand how it shaped her future.
So don't stay away from this book because it appears to be about a funeral home. The Undertaker's Daughter is a memoir and a story about life.
There's always a reason I'm drawn to certain books with unusual titles or captivating covers. The Undertaker's Daughter brought forward a memory when I was a teenager. I had a very good friend, Georgia, whose parents had a vacation home on a lake in a small town in central Ohio. Every weekend I went with her to water ski, swim and cruise down main street on Saturday night. We were 16, so of course boys were also in the mix.
One boy we met was the undertaker's son. The family lived upstairs and the funeral home, downstairs. He gave us a tour of the embalming room. I remember the walls being painted that old hospital green, a stainless steel table in the corner and hoses neatly wrapped up in even circles hanging on the wall. Just like Kate, the author of this book, it creeped me out.
Kate and her family move to a small southern town so her father can run a funeral home. Every time the phone rings, they know someone has died. That means they must stay upstairs and be quiet until the viewing and funeral are over. That's a difficult task for a family hiding enough secrets to fill all the coffins in the showroom downstairs.
What I found intriguing about this story is not so much the business of death but about living life with the hand we're dealt. Much of this story is about Kate as a child. It's not until later in her life does she learn about her father's affairs and drinking habits. Her sister is said to be moody and in reality is severely bi polar. The family's black maid cooks for them but must eat all her own meals alone. Kate's first boyfriend is black which she knows must be kept secret or her family would be destroyed.
I didn't view this memoir as a story about death, but one about racial discrimination, mental illness, alcoholism. For Kate these things were swept under the carpet. Not until she became an adult did she begin to understand how it shaped her future.
So don't stay away from this book because it appears to be about a funeral home. The Undertaker's Daughter is a memoir and a story about life.
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