Six Feet Under Texas

Would it be morose to consider a book about cemeteries to be delightful? So be it, because such is the case with Six Feet Under Texas! As author Tui Snider clearly explains in the beginning of the book: “People forget that cemeteries are for the living!”

This book tells us about notable cemeteries in 28 different towns throughout Texas. In its 50 chapters, Snider tells us about some of the famous – and infamous – graves in this state, as well as some graves that are simply curiosities. I found the book to be very informative, and written in a way as to make the subject matter very entertaining. (This does not mean the book is disrespectful to the deceased. I considered all of it to be proper and respectful.)

The book seems very well arranged. The chapters are ordered based on the names of the cities in which the cemeteries are located, from Acton to Weatherford. Geographically, consecutive chapters may jump from one part of the state to another, but because of the subject matter, this is not a problem.

I was already aware of some of the more famous stories, such and Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow, as well as… Okay, that’s the only one I knew. I knew that Lee Harvey Oswald was buried somewhere in Texas, but I was unaware of the little story surrounding his burial.

This book is filled with those little tidbits of information that make it well worth the read. From the ashes of the Alamo defenders to the burial of only body parts, as well as a grave missing a body, this book certainly has a variety of stories. And that’s what is really enjoyable – the little stories that surround these notable graves. It’s clear that Tui Snider did some painstaking research to separate the facts from the myths.

At the end of each chapter, the author includes the physical address of the cemetery discussed in the chapter. I considered this to be especially thoughtful of the author. In addition to sharing her thoughts with us in her words, the author makes it easy for us to retrace her steps, if we were so inclined.

I would also like to note that this is not a horror book, nor is it in any way scary. It will not haunt your dreams, if you’re worried of such things. For the subject matter at hand, I think Tui Snider did a wonderful job of presenting it.

My only criticism of this book is that I think it could have used something after the last chapter to sum things up. There was an Introduction to inform the reader of how the book was constructed, but after the last chapter it just stopped. The author includes a chapter on For further reading, but I just felt that some sort of “conclusion” would have been useful.

Six Feet Under Texas is a quick read – only 250 pages. It also includes at least one photo of each grave mentioned, most if not all taken by the author. The photos are in color and in focus. (Thank you, Tui!)

I recommend this book to anyone living in Texas. It would be a worthy addition to any proper collection of Texas books.