by Robert Walch

In the mood for something with a decided Halloween air to it? The History of Death (Lyons Press, $19.95) by Michael Kerrigan might sound a bit macabre but it certainly does fit the season.

As the publisher writes, “This wide-ranging book examines the compelling subject of death and burial in varied cultures, societies, and ages. It considers the rituals surrounding death, from the drama of medieval French royal funerals to the live burials of the Dinka in the Sudan. … Covering all periods in history and religions, The History of Death also examines the differing approaches to funerals, whether solemn, celebratory, drunken or even sexually promiscuous. It illuminates … the processes of grieving, burial, cremation, remembrance, and the differing concepts of life after death.”

Illustrated with black and white photos and artwork, The History of Death will take the reader from bucolic English churchyards to Chile’s Atacama coast and explain the celebrations honoring the departed, such as Dia de los Muertos and All Souls’ Day.

If fiction is more to your liking, Manda Scott’s The Crystal Skull (Delacorte Press, $25) may put you in the right mood for trick-or-treat time.

Mayan prophecy says the world will end on Dec. 21, 2012 unless 13 special crystal skulls are found and brought together. Scott uses the legend as the inspiration for this novel set in two time periods. Two skull keepers, an Elizabethan physician and a modern day Cambridge scholar, possess the same skull carved from sapphire.

It is up to these two men to unlock the secrets of the skull, both in the past and the present, before it’s too late to turn the tide of impending destruction.

A combination of myth, history and suspense, this spellbinding thriller is a “treat” you’ll certainly enjoy devouring!