{The subjects of the obituaries} must have led interesting and thought-provoking lives. Whether they have led good lives, in the usual meaning of “good,” couldn’t matter less.

The Economist had been published weekly for more than 150 years before it introduced an obituary column in 1995, and this collection contains ~200 2-page entries about people (and one parrot) who died between then and the next 10+ years. Reading it feels like reading an encyclopedia and that’s not a bad thing -- one fascinating topic (person) after another, an eclectic group whose lives touch on seemingly every aspect and locale of the past hundred years in world history. I loved it.

I'd heard of perhaps a quarter of the people, but all of the lives and events were so interesting and informative that I skimmed/skipped almost none. A few of my favorites are about:

• Alex, the African Grey parrot (who apparently used words to truly communicate, not just “parrot” them);

• Ernest Hendon (who survived the Tuskegee syphilis experiment);

• Albert Marshall and Lazare Ponticelli (the last surviving WWI British cavalryman and French foot soldier, respectively);

• Tiny Rowland (possibly the most ruthless person in the collection, his obit opens with, “Hunting around for something not too brutal to say about Tiny Rowland now that he is dead…”); and

• Max Perutz (Nobel-winning molecular biologist known for his enthusiastic exclamations of, “Fantastic!”) ( )

read 1 every day. very enjoyable and informative reading. i don't have good, specific long term memories of it. oh well. most of the people i'd never heard of. ( )

I bought this book on Amazon.com after reading various reviews of it on blogs on the internet. It is a really great book, love the fact that I can open it to any page and in a few minutes read one of the obits. The obituaries are more like a short biography and are fascinating. The subjects who are immortalized in these pages are one of a kind and inspirational. Reading the achievements and possibly the backgroudn behind it of the subjects, whether famous or not, inspires me to work harder and not give up on my dreams and ambitions. My husband loves reading The Economist Book of Obituaries the same way as me a little at a time, It is great for those of us who love to read but only can steal a few minutes at a time before getting interrupted.. ( )

What was really revealing about "The Economist Book of Obituaries" was how lacking we are in the specifics of our most recent history. What better way to know what was going on in the lives of our parents and grandparents. Any person written about in the book has a distinct relevance to our lives and the lives of our closest relatives. Ever want to know about Cup O' Noodles, frozen dairy whipped topping, people who pioneered efforts in nutrition or dieting? You can find small but complete examples of each person's focus. Teachers, firefighters, gardeners, politicians are all represented. One person's life sees the beginning of a trend, another the end. The most touching stories were those of individuals finding one thing that they were passionate about and making that their life's focus. There is a strong lesson about doing one thing and doing it as perfectly as you can. In reading this book you get a smorgasbord of topics and people from all around the world and see lives that were all lived through the last one hundred years. Everyone should start reading the daily obituaries to see where we are coming from, and where we are going. -KA ( )

I am drawn to this type of book and really enjoyed picking at it over time. Interesting and well written, these are not your standard obituaries. They instead act as a small window into the lives of the people they are meant to honor. The photographs provide an appreciated connection and I would definitely recommend this. ( )