As October ends ...

It's officially October now at the end of the month. Rainy, moist, cold then warm and humid. The smell of fallen leaves and rain water.

When I think of October at other times of the year, what comes to mind are vibrant colors, cool crisp air, pumpkins and leaves. When I think of Halloween, first I think of all the cool stuff ... then of rainy, yucko nights trick-or-treating. Well, October is here in her yuckiest. Ah, well. It's all good no matter what. It's fall!

But as the ground gets wetter, the winds get stronger and the days get shorter, it means there is less time to spend in the cemeteries. On the bright side, there's more time to curl up with those cemetery books you've been wanting to read. You know the ones, they've been piling up on your shelves while you've been out among the graves snapping pictures.

If you don't have a stack of books ready, though, here's a list for you to check out:

- Cemetery Walk (of course!) by Minda Powers-Douglas
- Stories in Stone by Doug Keister
- Translating Tombstones by Minda (though this is best used out in the field as a reference)
- Cemetery Stories by Katherine Ramsland
- Your Guide to Cemetery Research by Sharon DeBartolo Carmack
- Cemeteries and Gravemarkers by Richard Meyer (great essays/papers throughout!)
- Stones and Bones of New England by Lisa Rogak (I'm going to finally read this one myself ... been sitting on my shelf, waiting)
- New Orleans Cemeteries by Robert Florence (love it!)

What about you? What cemetery books do you like best or have on your shelf to read?

Happy Halloween!
Minda

www.TheCemeteryClub.com

One event added, another cancelled

Unfortunately, I won't be able to make it to Michigan for the Victorian Halloween event.

BUT, I will be giving a gravestone rubbing demonstration/talk during the Apple Festival this weekend in LeClaire, Iowa! Be there at 1 p.m. to learn about this cool artwork that allows you to read unreadable gravestones and "capture" them to take with you.

All the best,
Minda

www.TheCemeteryClub.com