A Quick Look at

How to Mellify a Corpse

and Other Human Stories of Ancient Science & Superstition

Vicki León has done it again, creating yet another fascinating, riotous, and endlessly intriguing mind journey through the crazy side of history. 

The book's title drove me to immediately find out exactly what in the world mellifying a corpse was all about. Well, it's about honey. Egyptians used honey as an antiseptic, claiming nine hundred golden remedies with its use. The Greeks also believed in honey's ability to cure. Romans soaked their bandages in it. Mad honey, made dangerous from toxic nectar, destroyed military troops and added a special kick to wine. But the real kicker here is that Alexander the Great directed that his body be embalmed in honey, as the Babylonians had done with their dead. Honey, it turns out, keeps a body dried out but nicely preserved. Alexander died in 323 B.C.  Roman Emperor Caracalla, who reigned from 211 to 217 A.D., referred to the body as "lifelike." Apparently there is no need to let yourself go just because you're dead.

Having settled that mystery, I smeared myself with honey and dove into the rest of the book with enthusiasm.

Speaking of sweetness and death, the Greeks and Romans created sweetness and an earlier demise by cooking in, eating from, and storing food and liquids in lead pots and utensils. Lead was all the rage as a common ingredient in cosmetics, soaps, and ointments. As the author points out, a kiss of death was a real possibility.

Taking the reader from Europe to Africa to Asia, León gives her readers a joyous look at traditions, taboos, lunacy, romance, superstitions, and warfare. This is the kind of book you will find yourself quoting to friends and unable to put down. How to Mellify a Corpse is a sweet treat for readers. Indulge yourself.

Learn more about your neighbor, Vicki León.         Visit her blog at Vicki León.com/blog.             Purchase a copy.