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In the Land of Long Fingernails
During the hazy summer of 1969, Charles Wilkins, then a student at the University of Toronto, took a job as a gravedigger. The bizarre-but-true events of that time, including a midsummer gravediggers’ strike, the unearthing of a victim of an unsolved murder, and a little illegal boneshifting, play out amongst a Barnumesque parade of mavericks and misfits in this macabre and hilarious memoir of mortality, materialism, and the gradual coming-ofage of an impressionable young man.
220 pages, Hardcover
First published September 30, 2008
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391 people want to read
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Charles Wilkins
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
October 1, 2023
Hilariously Funny and Full of Gory Details
IN THE LAND OF LONG FINGERNAILS by Charles Wilkins
No spoilers. 5 stars. This true story is the perfect Halloween read for people like me who like their stories a little on the weird side...
In 1969, death was unhip...
It was the year of flower children, free love, campus protests, civil rights battles, Timothy Leary, the Vietnam war, the moon landing, and the Beatles...
Whatever the current events...
Life and death carried on for the rag tag, multicultural employees at Woodlawn Everlasting Cemetery...
Scotty is the cantankerous 72 year old Scottish boss who loves his whiskey. Luccio is an Italian who dreams of writing poetry professionally...
... Then there's Hogjaw from Belgium, called the rag and bone man for his reputation of stealing anything off of a corpse who assists Peter, the gravedigger...
... Fred is the Polish one-armed gardener (figure that one out), and lastly, Norman, a pimply 17 year old rock star wannabe...
This true story is brilliantly and humorously related by Charles Wilkins, a college-aged kid looking for employment in 1969 at a time when work was hard to find and finds a job at Woodlawn Everlasting Cemetery...
The job hazards they encounter include...
... sinkers (old graves in which the coffin has rotted and caved in leaving an indentation in the grave)...
... stinkers (decomposing corpses) and slurpees (graves that are waterlogged due to the rising water table)...
This book is a good choice for the Halloween season. It gives good insight into the gruesome career of gravedigging while remaining hilariously human. Beware, though, that it is loaded with the gory details of the job.
IN THE LAND OF LONG FINGERNAILS by Charles Wilkins
No spoilers. 5 stars. This true story is the perfect Halloween read for people like me who like their stories a little on the weird side...
In 1969, death was unhip...
It was the year of flower children, free love, campus protests, civil rights battles, Timothy Leary, the Vietnam war, the moon landing, and the Beatles...
Whatever the current events...
Life and death carried on for the rag tag, multicultural employees at Woodlawn Everlasting Cemetery...
Scotty is the cantankerous 72 year old Scottish boss who loves his whiskey. Luccio is an Italian who dreams of writing poetry professionally...
... Then there's Hogjaw from Belgium, called the rag and bone man for his reputation of stealing anything off of a corpse who assists Peter, the gravedigger...
... Fred is the Polish one-armed gardener (figure that one out), and lastly, Norman, a pimply 17 year old rock star wannabe...
This true story is brilliantly and humorously related by Charles Wilkins, a college-aged kid looking for employment in 1969 at a time when work was hard to find and finds a job at Woodlawn Everlasting Cemetery...
The job hazards they encounter include...
... sinkers (old graves in which the coffin has rotted and caved in leaving an indentation in the grave)...
... stinkers (decomposing corpses) and slurpees (graves that are waterlogged due to the rising water table)...
This book is a good choice for the Halloween season. It gives good insight into the gruesome career of gravedigging while remaining hilariously human. Beware, though, that it is loaded with the gory details of the job.
November 26, 2011
I had originally put this title on a TBR list for my hubby, as he loves this sort of thing. We've both read a couple of interesting books about death and the funeral industry, so this was a no-brainer. When I finally got it for him (the book, not a funeral), he flew through it and told me lots of little tidbits, enough that my interest was piqued. I finally finished it this morning, no small feat thanks to a busy work schedule, in-laws in for the Thanksgiving holiday, and general weariness of late which has had me falling asleep with only one, if any, chapters read at night.
The book is well-written, and yes, it is very interesting. The title is a bit of a misnomer, though, as Wilkins was not an "official" gravedigger. That title belonged to the only two union men on the crew, Peter and Hogjaw. When the strike hits (in the middle of summer, no less), the dead cannot be buried, as there are no other gravediggers available. Yes, Wilkins and his non-union co-workers could have done the job, but they are legally bound not to. Coffins with corpses are loaded into one of the buildings that has been outfitted with industrial A/C units; even so, after almost 3 weeks (and some 50+ corpses), the place is really starting to smell. Wilkin's job mostly consisted of cemetery maintenance, such as mowing lawns, clipping the parts that couldn't be mowed, filling in "sinkers" (plots that have settled enough to be noticeable by visiting mourners) and other such minutia that make a cemetery a place of peace.
There are several characters here, though. Peter and Hogjaw are the union guys. Luccio Pucci is an Italian in Canada on a visa (which has all but expired); he's a philosopher, writer, and in need of a better-paying, "real", job. He has hopes of becoming an economist, but seems to put off every potential employer. Fred is the one-armed groundskeeper, a quiet man of dignity who has perhaps one of the scariest brushes with death, as it is all too common and could happen to anyone. There's David, a grandson of the gravediggers' boss, Scotty. Scotty is the biggest character of all, something of a stereotype, but probably all too real. He drinks Scotch (of course) but it must be Cutty Sark and none other. He's brusque with his crew, yelling at them over the smallest details, and yet he can be sensitive at times. And like all human beings, he has a private life that his crew eventually learn of, one that explains his alcoholism to a point, one that makes him all the more human.
It's a good book, entertaining despite its topic. Some will find the gallows humour off-putting, I'm sure. But lots of professions use that sort of humour to deal with death: police, emergency personnel, etc. It's how you might react if you were the one faced with death on a daily basis. But the book isn't really about death - it's about life. And in the end, how you live it is more important than how you leave it.
The book is well-written, and yes, it is very interesting. The title is a bit of a misnomer, though, as Wilkins was not an "official" gravedigger. That title belonged to the only two union men on the crew, Peter and Hogjaw. When the strike hits (in the middle of summer, no less), the dead cannot be buried, as there are no other gravediggers available. Yes, Wilkins and his non-union co-workers could have done the job, but they are legally bound not to. Coffins with corpses are loaded into one of the buildings that has been outfitted with industrial A/C units; even so, after almost 3 weeks (and some 50+ corpses), the place is really starting to smell. Wilkin's job mostly consisted of cemetery maintenance, such as mowing lawns, clipping the parts that couldn't be mowed, filling in "sinkers" (plots that have settled enough to be noticeable by visiting mourners) and other such minutia that make a cemetery a place of peace.
There are several characters here, though. Peter and Hogjaw are the union guys. Luccio Pucci is an Italian in Canada on a visa (which has all but expired); he's a philosopher, writer, and in need of a better-paying, "real", job. He has hopes of becoming an economist, but seems to put off every potential employer. Fred is the one-armed groundskeeper, a quiet man of dignity who has perhaps one of the scariest brushes with death, as it is all too common and could happen to anyone. There's David, a grandson of the gravediggers' boss, Scotty. Scotty is the biggest character of all, something of a stereotype, but probably all too real. He drinks Scotch (of course) but it must be Cutty Sark and none other. He's brusque with his crew, yelling at them over the smallest details, and yet he can be sensitive at times. And like all human beings, he has a private life that his crew eventually learn of, one that explains his alcoholism to a point, one that makes him all the more human.
It's a good book, entertaining despite its topic. Some will find the gallows humour off-putting, I'm sure. But lots of professions use that sort of humour to deal with death: police, emergency personnel, etc. It's how you might react if you were the one faced with death on a daily basis. But the book isn't really about death - it's about life. And in the end, how you live it is more important than how you leave it.
March 19, 2024
I have what might be termed a somewhat unhealthy interest in the death industry, so when I learned about this memoir, I figured it would be right up my alley. Unfortunately, my first impressions of this book, that this wasn’t really my cup of tea, were borne out.
I have been spoiled by Caitlin Doughty and her books. In Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: And Other Lessons from the Crematory, she tells us stories of the time she worked in a crematorium, and then in From Here to Eternity: Traveling the World to Find the Good Death, Doughty teaches us about funeral habits of people all over the globe. Both books are incredibly informative and interesting.
This book is far less so. I have never before heard of Charles Wilkins, but this book reads more like a fever dream experienced by a male teen with a high sex drive. Any time Wilkins mentions a girl or woman, it’s always about her physical appearance. He even talks about his coworker’s “fruity breasts” (please, God, let me never again read that phrase in my life). I understand that most men, especially those who are 19 years old, have an incredibly high sex drive, but it just seemed so out of place in a memoir about working in a graveyard.
There isn’t much about working in the graveyard, surprisingly enough. There’s a lot about his friend Luccio, a man with high philosophical ideas who is working at the cemetery before he can move on to bigger and better things, but they generally sit around the graveyard smoking weed and avoiding any real work. Occasionally Wilkins describes tending the plots, trimming the grass, or preparing a plot for a burial, but it seems like he wanted more to write a sensational, titillating story about a supremely alcoholic boss, getting high on company time, cleaning up feces left by vagrants at the edges of the cemetery, and keeping out of the boss’s eye so as not to accomplish any real work. It all seems rather disrespectful of the dead, especially when he and another gravedigger open the casket of a 17-year-old girl who died of cancer just to look at her, and his coworker actually touches her cheek.
All in all, this book left a rather unpleasant taste in my mouth. I’ll stick to Caitlin Doughty and Jessica Mitford from now on.
I have been spoiled by Caitlin Doughty and her books. In Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: And Other Lessons from the Crematory, she tells us stories of the time she worked in a crematorium, and then in From Here to Eternity: Traveling the World to Find the Good Death, Doughty teaches us about funeral habits of people all over the globe. Both books are incredibly informative and interesting.
This book is far less so. I have never before heard of Charles Wilkins, but this book reads more like a fever dream experienced by a male teen with a high sex drive. Any time Wilkins mentions a girl or woman, it’s always about her physical appearance. He even talks about his coworker’s “fruity breasts” (please, God, let me never again read that phrase in my life). I understand that most men, especially those who are 19 years old, have an incredibly high sex drive, but it just seemed so out of place in a memoir about working in a graveyard.
There isn’t much about working in the graveyard, surprisingly enough. There’s a lot about his friend Luccio, a man with high philosophical ideas who is working at the cemetery before he can move on to bigger and better things, but they generally sit around the graveyard smoking weed and avoiding any real work. Occasionally Wilkins describes tending the plots, trimming the grass, or preparing a plot for a burial, but it seems like he wanted more to write a sensational, titillating story about a supremely alcoholic boss, getting high on company time, cleaning up feces left by vagrants at the edges of the cemetery, and keeping out of the boss’s eye so as not to accomplish any real work. It all seems rather disrespectful of the dead, especially when he and another gravedigger open the casket of a 17-year-old girl who died of cancer just to look at her, and his coworker actually touches her cheek.
All in all, this book left a rather unpleasant taste in my mouth. I’ll stick to Caitlin Doughty and Jessica Mitford from now on.
November 17, 2018
A very funny, in a twisted way, book. This might be a good time to confess I have a fascination with cemeteries and cemetery stories which somehow is involved with my genealogical hauntings. This is the story of the author's summer job in a Toronto cemetery when he was 19, in the summer of love: 1969. If you think death is serious, you'll hate it. If you are one of those people who finds humour in the absurd, you'll love it. The cast of characters: the drunken Scot who manages the cemetery, the one armed Polish gardener who survived the Nazi camps, the Italian PhD candidate/ writer who sneaks off to read, smoke dope and nap in the various areas ("Garden of Old Testament Patriarchs","Garden of the Apostles of the Living Christ", "Garden of the Blessed Redeemer", etc.). The fun is never ending (for the readers at least): the description of the various graveyard catalogs in the office, the description of the summer long gravediggers' strike, the paycheck motto of "Eternal Peace, Eternal Maintenance", the messages constructed of large size pasta noodles on top of the burial crypts then painted to match the concrete vaults. A fun and amusing read.
July 18, 2015
really more of a 4.5.
i loved everything about this book. it was an interesting character study, a bit of toronto history and best of all, an honest portrayal of the cemetery business. it didn't try to make macabre of the subject matter nor go for spooks and frights, but just straightforward literary non-fiction.
i deducted half a star because i found that it did lag in parts (but really, what book doesn't?) and because i found the situation with luccio and his sister never really resolved nor explained-- i think there was more there than the writer was willing to tell. with that being said, i almost want to add it back for that sublimely cinematic last scene, the narrator peeling out of the cemetery in his beater car, the leaves changing colour, final paycheque in hand, creedence clearwater revival blasting on the stereo.
i think this is one i'll come back to and read again, teasing out clues as to which cemetery this actually is, and perhaps read a passage or two beneath the trees like luccio would.
i loved everything about this book. it was an interesting character study, a bit of toronto history and best of all, an honest portrayal of the cemetery business. it didn't try to make macabre of the subject matter nor go for spooks and frights, but just straightforward literary non-fiction.
i deducted half a star because i found that it did lag in parts (but really, what book doesn't?) and because i found the situation with luccio and his sister never really resolved nor explained-- i think there was more there than the writer was willing to tell. with that being said, i almost want to add it back for that sublimely cinematic last scene, the narrator peeling out of the cemetery in his beater car, the leaves changing colour, final paycheque in hand, creedence clearwater revival blasting on the stereo.
i think this is one i'll come back to and read again, teasing out clues as to which cemetery this actually is, and perhaps read a passage or two beneath the trees like luccio would.
November 30, 2013
In the summer of 1969, Charles Wilkins, then a university student, took a five month summer job as a gravedigger in a Toronto cemetery, otherwise aptly termed 'the land of long fingernails'. If the title doesn't break you up, the sarcasm of Luccio, one of the collection of misfits who works at the cemetery while waiting to land a job at Imperial Oil where he can use his master's degree, surely will have you in stitches. Referring to a 'rococo little bone crypt, with its crenellated eaves and shiny brass top' he said, "How would you like to spend eternity rammed into this piece of shit?" The other 'misfits' are equally colorful and through their stories we learn of the inner workings of the business of death, and also some of the sensational stories they all have to tell. I found the book highly entertaining, and it has affirmed my decision to be cremated--ashes scattered to earth, water and air!
October 6, 2009
Perhaps it says a lot that the blurb on the back of this book was by Mary Roach, whose book, Stiff is one of my favorite nonfiction books. I listened to an interview with Wilkins on NPR one afternoon and realized that this book sounded fascinating, so I knew I had to read it for myself (even before knowing of Ms. Roach's recommendation). I wasn't disappointed. With humor, and an appreciation of morbid curiosity, his book truly highlights the realities of working in a cemetery. Granted, his experience was during 1969 - and he and his colleagues pretty much spend the whole summer baked. A great account of a strange summer job.
December 21, 2013
This slim memoir of five months of employment in a suburban graveyard in Toronto in 1969 is a real treat. It feeds all of your senses and has a great cast of motley characters, who couldn't be improved if their story were fictional. It also represents a coming-of-age moment for the author (and narrator) and his new friendship with the incredible and irrepressible Luccio is both memorable and ultimately bittersweet - something of a "bromance". By turns, horrifying and hilarious, Wilkins makes sure that anyone reading this book will opt for the cremation checkbox when planning a funeral - their own or anyone else's!.
September 29, 2009
I am drawn to quirky memoirs of folks in unusual places during unusual times, doing unusual things. This one hits the mark in those catagories. I read an advance of Her Fearful Symmetries recently, and was drawn to a real experience of working in a graveyard. Wilkins' graveyard isn't full of spooks and haunts, unless you're describing the maudlin group who tend it. Some of his characterizations are very powerful and a bit sad, and his writing is energetic and fresh. I don't think this book changed me, but it's plain that Wilkins' experience did change him.
May 5, 2023
In 1969, Charles takes a summer job at a cemetery in Toronto digging graves. The book is essentially a collection of anecdotes from working this job.
The style of writing was difficult for me to get in to, and likely why it took quite a long time to finish the book. This book was just not one that I gravitated towards to pick up. It has some fun moments in it, but overall came across as boring to me.
The style of writing was difficult for me to get in to, and likely why it took quite a long time to finish the book. This book was just not one that I gravitated towards to pick up. It has some fun moments in it, but overall came across as boring to me.
September 26, 2011
Charles Wilkins' memoir In the Land of Long Fingernails is an intriguing and (dare I say) lively glimpse into the world of cemeteries and what goes on behind the scenes in enacting the final chapter of people's lives. Wilkins looks at not just the processes involved and where those processes can go awry, comically or tragically, but he also casts an eye, that of his adult self filtering his youthful perceptions, on the individuals who carry out those processes, which most people do not want to know about, much less be called upon to take them on themselves.
In a fashion that is kind of Roy MacGregor meets Six Feet Under, the memoir recounts Wilkins' one summer working in a graveyard. That summer happened to be 1969, a year pivotal in general and historical consciousness, and also so for the young Wilkins, who was a recalcitrant university student at the time. As such, his insights into the workings of the graveyard are intermingled with his own personal turmoil, as he struggles with decisions about his future and his relationships with friends and family. His is not the stylish angst of Nate Fisher, but something much more down to earth (guess that's a pun) and not without a sense of humour.
Wilkins' observations are never macabre or overly unsettling, and ultimately the book is quite respectful and compassionate of both the living and the dead.
In a fashion that is kind of Roy MacGregor meets Six Feet Under, the memoir recounts Wilkins' one summer working in a graveyard. That summer happened to be 1969, a year pivotal in general and historical consciousness, and also so for the young Wilkins, who was a recalcitrant university student at the time. As such, his insights into the workings of the graveyard are intermingled with his own personal turmoil, as he struggles with decisions about his future and his relationships with friends and family. His is not the stylish angst of Nate Fisher, but something much more down to earth (guess that's a pun) and not without a sense of humour.
Wilkins' observations are never macabre or overly unsettling, and ultimately the book is quite respectful and compassionate of both the living and the dead.
June 24, 2013
This book ended up on my “to read” list for two reasons- first it was one of the Globe and Mail’s top 100 books for 2008, and second it was a nominee for the 2009 Stephen Leacock Award. Despite the kudos, I found it a disappointment. It is the summer of 1969 and 19 year old Charles takes a summer job at a large cemetery in Toronto. Here he digs graves, helps maintain the grounds and prepares the burial sites for funerals. There are some funny and not so funny moments described here, including stories and profiles of the others working with him, the chore of minding a number of coffins in a refrigerated chapel during a gravediggers strike and the eerie disinterment of a murder victim. There are some macabre moments and some hilarious ones. Hardly a day goes by when there is not some grim new violation of civility or law. I just did not feel this memoir was an “award winner”.
September 26, 2010
A tasty memoir of the sixties culture and a young mans coming of age in a toronto cemetary as a gravedigger one summer before college. Not quite as free as some of his American counterparts, he seems to stretch a bit when trying to have the same dark edge of folks like Thompson, or Bukowski. Still an enjoyable read none the less. As a reader I was not as put off by the drug or sex culture of the times (he didn't really aim to shock with this I suppose) as the day-to-day operations of a cemetary run by a drunk scotsman since the times of the great depression. Things are a bit gruesome when speaking of twice selling grave sites (exhuming bodies a must) or the "quarry" and what they hide in there.
February 8, 2011
As a former grave digger myself I had to check this book out and it hits pretty close to home, despite taking place the year I was born. There's books on the subject from the funeral home and over views of the larger industry but this is the first one I've read from the groundsman's point of view. It's got the ring of truth to it. I could tell stories that would fit right in with this book despite taking place being in another country and 35 years later.
October 1, 2013
If you ever had a summer job, late into high school, you will be able to relate to this coming-of-age story. The wacky setting made me laugh the hardest I've laughed in years, due in part to my own experiences as a graveyard worker. The book moves smartly from comedy to soul-searching, and finishes on an intense bittersweet note that has not left me. I read this book twice in short order, and it's time for another trip through.
June 26, 2009
I always struggle a bit with Charlie's vocabulary. But that aside, I thought this was a great read. His fave book of mine is still Walk to New York, but this is definitely the close second. Want to know what it's like to work in a graveyard back in the 60s? This is your book!
January 8, 2011
The subtitle on this book is "A Gravedigger in the Age of Aquarius". And...that's pretty much what it is - a kid with a summer job at a cemetery, and the bizarre characters who work there. A fun, quick read.
August 23, 2011
There isn't much of a story here, and I never felt as if I knew the main character/author--which might be deliberate on the author's part--but still an engaging read. Wilkins' writing style drew me in and his gift for writing engaging characters convinced me to keep reading.
March 16, 2009
Love it! A lot of fun and some pretty amazing scandalous topics.
August 20, 2010
Wilkins' writing style is so engaging, and I especially enjoyed reading about one of my favourite cities (Toronto) through the eyes of "A Gravedigger in the Age of Aquarius." An excellent read!
December 29, 2010
Very well written. Very enlightening!
Read
August 7, 2011This was a funny and interesting look into a very unique industry.
August 30, 2011
Interesting anecdotes on life as a graveyard worker in east Toronto in the late 60's. I'll kid myself and believe things have changed since then...
February 5, 2013
Interesting read, it does give an insider view of working in a cemetery though it is a bit more of a personal memoir than informative.
August 1, 2014
A little underwhelming, but worth a second look.
July 14, 2017
A quick and entertaining read.
January 21, 2014
Boring
April 5, 2023
I enjoyed this book immensely, I couldn’t put it down! It’s a very easy read with great pacing. I found I devoured it quickly. I think it also helped that I felt a connection to this story because it takes place so close to me, in Toronto, Ontario. The specific Toronto cemetery is never named in the book, but being that I live about 4 hours away, I know I can visit it someday. There are some incredibly funny moments, but also some somber ones, creating a balance between the anecdotal stories. It’s a fascinating memoir but also a great insight into the everyday work life of a gravedigger in the late 60s.
To read my full review, visit http://chantallarochelle.ca/2022/09/1...
To read my full review, visit http://chantallarochelle.ca/2022/09/1...
October 16, 2018
This is certainly a tale of dark humor, but one with an unexpectedly smart thesis. Wilkins tells the story of a group of misfit cemetery workers as they go about their tasks loafing, fighting, getting intoxicated and exposing the awful truth about the business of death. Instead of facing full existential terror, these would-be rebels go about tryng to blunt (pun intended) their minds to their short and long term fails. I smiled and shook my head through the whole book till the surprising ending when the 60’s anti- heroes walk off the page never to be seen again except maybe in The Graduate or in a Canadian-version of the 80’s show Family Ties.
April 28, 2020
A playful and mischievously written book about the "dirty business" of gravedigging and cemetery maintenance.
Don't expect too much from this tale; it is essentially the short true story of a young stoner who works in a cemetery as a summer job to make money for university. There are no great revelations or episodes of melancholic reflection or tenderness. Gallows humour is in attendance throughout.
Wilkins does a good job however of describing the observational nuances of people; friends, colleagues, bosses, and customers alike. Fred (the one-armed gardener) is my favourite person!
Still worth a read but not the definitive text on gravedigging (if there is such a thing!)
Don't expect too much from this tale; it is essentially the short true story of a young stoner who works in a cemetery as a summer job to make money for university. There are no great revelations or episodes of melancholic reflection or tenderness. Gallows humour is in attendance throughout.
Wilkins does a good job however of describing the observational nuances of people; friends, colleagues, bosses, and customers alike. Fred (the one-armed gardener) is my favourite person!
Still worth a read but not the definitive text on gravedigging (if there is such a thing!)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews