Faithful Unto Death: Pet cemeteries, animal graves, and eternal devotion

by Paul Koudounaris

Genres: Nonfiction, Death, Animals, History, Photography

256 pages, Hardcover

Published October 1, 2024

About the author

Paul Koudounaris is an author and photographer from Los Angeles. He has a PhD in Art History and his publications in the field of charnel house and ossuary research have made him a well-known figure in the field of macabre art and art history. He is a member of The Order of the Good Death.

Reviews

[Wednesday · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful book and I highly recommend it, however unless you want your heart shattered into a million pieces, do not read the section near the end about Stoney the elephant. That will haunt me for the rest of my life.

[Solshine Soulshine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read 25 books in 2024, and this was one of my favorites. A beautiful, heavy, and heartfelt tribute to our animal kin, it devastated me and brought me joy. It’s a reminder: they deserve better, and we can do better. This book will stay with me forever.

[Ashley (Red-Haired Ash Reads) · Rating 5 out of 5]

“The love the animals gave will never be forgotten.”

This was a beautifully written book about the love people hold for their pets and how we deal with their deaths. Paul Koudounaris photographs and research into pet cemeteries really shows a whole new side of love and grief that most people don’t think about.

The stories and photographs in this book are captivating, not just because they show the depths of people's love for their pets and their grief over the loss, but also because of the lives these animals lived. I was captivated from the very beginning of this book with the stories of these animals, some famous, some not. Their stories were fascinating and really showed a whole new side of history that I never considered before.

While the majority of the animals in this book are cats and dogs, we also see other critters as well, some of which I was surprised by. Koudounaris does a fantastic job with this book and I really love the animal stories he was able to pack into 250 pages.

This was a fantastic book that made me reevaluate history, grief, and my own pets' mortality and what I might want for them. Also while this whole book deals with grief and loss, it never felt depressing or weighed down by this heavy topic.

TW: animal deaths described; animal cruelty; grief; suicide (pg. 137); animal poisoning;

[Alexis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Faithful Unto Death was a wonderful blind pick up read. I picked this up based on the cover and the recommendation of a morbid book club member.

Wow, this book is heavy In context and sad to read, I found it very well done and tasteful. Done in such a way to honor the animals that so often become our family members.

On the flipside of that heartbreaking stories and awful truths of animal abuse and cruelty.

I loved learning about the history of animal cemeteries, and how they were started. Such a vast variety of places and species. The pictures were enjoyable to look through and I found myself laughing out loud at times. This book was not only filled with history, but also heartfelt stories from the past in legends to live on.

Great book and would recommend to other morbid reading fans. Be aware of triggers.

[Alice D. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve read this book from cover to cover on a flight. What an absolute reminder that throughout time, if you are devoted to animals, you are not alone. From facts about early struggles to lay your loved one to rest to stories of heroism from our companions, this truly was a joy to read and impulsively bought at the exact right time.

[Kevin Buck · Rating 5 out of 5]

The history of pet cemeteries and some of the animals in them. There are heroes, beloved pets, working animals, and unknown strays. All of the stories are handled with dignity, compassion, and empathy.

You'll shed some tears.

[Sonia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this for the Peculiar book club. Fascinating history of pet cemeteries. Great photos and research. I really enjoyed the inscriptions. Also wished I had looked for the Presidio pet cemetery when I was there a few months ago!