The Secret Life of a Cemetery

From the head curator of the most famous cemetery in the world a moving story about a place where joy, grief, and wild nature converge in unexpected and inspiring ways. 'The Secret Life of a Cemetery is no maudlin reflection on death and remembrance...With its fox cubs and anecdotes (it) allows us a privileged glimpse of Gallot’s world, full of wonder and life.'—The Observer From the head curator of the most famous cemetery in the world—a moving and "enchanting" (Guardian) story about a place where joy, grief, and wild nature converge in unexpected and inspiring ways. For Benoît Gallot, Père Lachaise is best explored without a guide: You’re guaranteed to lose your way. You’ll feel as though you’ve stepped out of time, out of Paris, and into another place entirely. In his debut memoir, Gallot, head curator of Père Lachaise and son of a grave stonemason, pulls back the curtains on his otherworldly workplace—a cemetery crammed with tourists in the high season and mourners year-round, but also a natural paradise, where foxes roam, birds flit between trees, and wildflowers and moss encroach onto tombstones. In elegant, engrossing chapters, Gallot reveals the secret world of Père Lachaise—its Napoleonic origins, its unusual graves and monuments—alongside touching stories from his working life in the cemetery. Born into a family of undertakers, Gallot was named curator of Père-Lachaise in his early-thirties, inheriting the complex job of managing over 40 hectares of green space, overseeing 70,000 graves, and arranging burials and cremations, all while contending with millions of tourists—plus film crews, birdwatchers, ghost hunters, and the occasional nude performance artist. Gallot, who also lives on the cemetery grounds with his wife and young children, demystifies his…