6 Feet Under Texas: Lone Star Book Blog Tour – Review

I have to admit that when I read Tui Snider’s latest book, 6 Feet Under Texas, I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. When I received my advanced copy I devoured it in one sitting, which should definitely let loyal followers and prospective readers know that it takes no time to exhaust its 250 pages. It’s a quick, easy, and enjoyable read. That said, however, when I was done reading it, it really didn’t stay with me nor did it prompt me to want to necessarily travel to these cemeteries and gravesites.

OK… I’m admittedly the odd man out. Having grown up in Texas and calling San Antonio home for almost fifty-four years, I’m certainly aware that there are countless cemeteries scattered all across the Lone Star State containing the remains of the famous and the obscure, and that Tui has specialized in writing about these well-known and offbeat locations, the people buried there and their stories, building a readership through this release and similar publications like Paranormal Texas, Understanding Cemetery Symbols, and Graveyard Journal. There’s a quirky weirdness to these books that draws in the curious and those pursuing serious historical research, but it’s just not something that keeps my attention for long.

We all tend to read and react to books based on our own personal tastes, but when reviewing any book I try to put those prejudices and preferences aside. So, my first thought (upon reflection) was to just have fun with the book and enjoy it. It’s refreshing to read something informative and Tui’s storytelling style is like having a conversation with her, or perhaps more like listening to her actually narrate tidbits of information or anecdotal facts based on her personal travels.

She should definitely be credited for actually visiting these 28 cemeteries in North and East Texas and including their physical locations, directions to specific gravesites, and websites at the end of each chapter, but it’s her photos that truly bring these places and individuals to life, not just with words but with visual references.

With Halloween just around the corner, one might think the book’s release is timed to take advantage of All Hallows Eve. However, there is nothing ghoulish, spooky, or morbid about any of the entries in the book’s 50 chapters.

A second volume to 6 Feet Under Texas is apparently in the works, and there are certainly many more cemeteries and stories to be told. Thinking back on my opening comments, I think part of the reason that I wasn’t sure of my reaction is that the book ended very abruptly. That’s because each entry is self-contained, and there is no connection between them other than the occasional person or persons interred in the same Texas Town. In her introduction to the book where she mentions that she’ll be traveling and writing about cemeteries in South Texas, the author asks for suggestions about Volume II. Mine would simply be to tie it all together somehow to give the volumes context and closure.