Going Out in Style: The Architecture of Eternity by Douglas Keister

Going Out in Style: The Architecture of Eternity Reviews

• 
  Sheri

  A visual tour of cemetery architecture focusing on mausoleums, catafalques, and tumuli. These are of some of the final resting places of those of distinction, or at the very least, money, and the structures seen here outdo even the most ornate gravestones. Each picture is accompanied by a brief description of the architectural style, along with a few lines about the person buried there. A glossary of tomb terms is also included. I enjoyed the novelty, and found this to be an interesting book to browse through here and there, but not one I could read straight through.
• 
  Loren

  This is one of the grandest picture books on my cemetery shelf. Douglas Keister was the photographer who documented San Francisco's "Painted Ladies," the magnificent and gaudy Victorian houses. His cemetery photographs range here from lush green spring-scapes to luminous cerulean summer days to sunset-warmed hillsides to bleak spotlit night visions. Keister knows how to present beauty at its best angle.
  
  Unfortunately, the book would have benefited greatly from a list of addresses of the cemeteries included. (In fact, I was shocked not to find such contact information.) Its organization is so loose that it borders on confusing. Although the book includes a beautiful photograph from the leper colony on the island of Molokai in Hawaii, the bulk of the photographs hail from Massachusetts, New York, Ohio, New Orleans, and California. I'm sure there must be beautiful mausoleums elsewhere in the U.S., but they go unrepresented.
  
  Despite that, Xavier Cronin's text is easy to read and full of fun information. He was associate editor of American Cemetery magazine and the author of Grave Exodus: Tending to Our Dead in the 21st Century. He presents information I haven't seen anywhere else when comparing American mausoleums to their inspirations from antiquity: the Parthenon (probably the most copied), the Athenian Tower of the Winds, Egypt's Kiosk of Trajan (moved to avoid being flooded when the Aswan Dam was built), and the tomb of King Mausolus at Halicarnassus, one of the Wonders of the Ancient World.
  
  Despite the crazy layout, whether you pore over the text or simply gaze at the photographs, you can't go wrong with this book.
  
  This review appeared a long time ago on Gothic.Net, back when I was writing my cemetery column.
  
  
• 
  Batgrl (Book Data Kept Elsewhere)

  Color photos, indications of where each tomb is located (not precise location, but cemetery and state/country), and a bibliography. A good place to start if you're wanting a look at some unique burial monuments. I enjoy looking at this because even though I may have other books with more history and facts, it is nice to see the architecture in more than just black and white.
• 
  Chantal Larochelle

  This is a beautiful book! I was lucky enough to find a first edition hardcover copy, with glossy pages. All the photos are beautifully shot, really showcasing what makes each mausoleum unique. I loved that they took advantage of the book’s large size by including full-page images.
  
  One of my favorite aspects of the book, was when we were given a look inside the mausoleums. That was by far my favorite chapter.
  
  To read my full review, visit
  https://chantallarochelle.ca/2022/07/...