Mo Rocca is brilliant, funny, and honest. He knows things that most people never dream of knowing. And he does his homework. While reading this book, one learns captivating facts about presidents, movie stars, and others who were once well-known but are now dim lights. Mo makes sure the famous and the lesser so are celebrated one last time with respect and tasteful humor.

Mobituaries is also an autobiography, Readers learn as much about Mo as about Sammy Davis Jr. and Elizabeth Taylor. He inserts his own persona into the content, which works well for me but may not work for some. His humorous take on the world keeps the material lively.

The main people who populate his chapters are fascinating. However, I was often on overload with the trivia he supplies at the end of chapters about others in similar circumstances. More than once I found myself thinking, "TMI, Mo."

Overall, this is a fun, well-written book that will thrill Mo fans and others who enjoy history, the arts, and trivia.

I have loved Mo Rocca since his days on The Daily Show. His unique sense of humor appeals to my own unique sense of humor and I have never stopped being a fan. When he announced his podcast last year, I immediately hit subscribe because hearing unknown stories about death.....COME ON!

Mobituaries takes the podcast one step further, with additional stories and very Mo Rocca quips. The amount of research and detail for each story is so special that I read this over several days, taking a little every now and then, letting myself savor each one.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this fabulous book.

P.S. Mo Rocca, I love you. Let's have tea and talk about weird history.

What a treat! I've never listened to the podcast but I've watched Rocca for years on Sunday morning. His voice comes through loud in clear in this fascinating collection of obituaries. Handle this as if it were a volume of short stories- dip in and out. You'll learn something new even about the historical figures you've read about for years (Herbert Hoover). AND, there are obituaries for things such as the station wagon. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. It's lighthearted but never loses sight of history and the impact these people had. It's perfect for trivia fans and those who like to know the rest of the story.

I am so pleased that a few of my favorite podcasters are writing books. Last week I read Mike “Dirty Jobs” Rowe’s “The Way I Heard It” and this week, Mo Rocca’s “Mobituaries- Great Lives Worth Reliving”. Thoughtful, witty, and heartfelt storytelling about fascinating subjects. He is a true professional, down to earth and has done his homework in research and interviewing. The more I learn about Mo and his extensive resume, the more I’m a fan.

* will post additional online reviews post publication.

"From beloved CBS Sunday Morning correspondent and humorist Mo Rocca, an entertaining and rigorously researched book that celebrates the dead people who have long fascinated him.

Mo Rocca has always loved obituaries - reading about the remarkable lives of global leaders, Hollywood heavyweights, and innovators who changed the world. But not every notable life has gotten the send-off it deserves. His quest to right that wrong inspired Mobituaries, his #1 hit podcast. Now with Mobituaries, the book, he has gone much further, with all new essays on artists, entertainers, sports stars, political pioneers, founding fathers, and more. Even if you know the names, you’ve never understood why they matter...until now.

Take Herbert Hoover: before he was president, he was the “Great Humanitarian,” the man who saved tens of millions from starvation. But after less than a year in the White House, the stock market crashed, and all the good he had done seemed to be forgotten. Then there’s Marlene Dietrich, well remembered as a screen goddess, less remembered as a great patriot. Alongside American servicemen on the front lines during World War II, she risked her life to help defeat the Nazis of her native Germany. And what about Billy Carter and history’s unruly presidential brothers? Were they ne’er-do-well liabilities…or secret weapons? Plus, Mobits for dead sports teams, dead countries, the dearly departed station wagon, and dragons. Yes, dragons.

Rocca is an expert researcher and storyteller. He draws on these skills here. With his dogged reporting and trademark wit, Rocca brings these men and women back to life like no one else can. Mobituaries is an insightful and unconventional account of the people who made life worth living for the rest of us, one that asks us to think about who gets remembered, and why."

I've loved Mo Rocca for so long I don't even remember when it started. But how I missed Mobituaries, his podcast, until he was recently on Colbert I will never know! This book is perfect for fans of Mo, history, and those who just can't quite get into podcasts...

Very entertaining book. Mo Rocca provides very interesting snippets of the lives of (once) famous people. Names that are not necessarily known to the general public of the 21st Century, but compelling stories and snippets of information. Very well written and respectful to the subjects provided, Mo Rocca's book is recommended to those who are interested in biography or history.

This one did not wind up being what I expected at all. I like Mo Rocca, but like a couple of the other reviewers, think a big part of why I like him is his timing and delivery - neither of which come across very well in a printed word format. If he was reading the audiobook, this would probably be a lot more engaging. I also felt like a lot of what he wrote was not what I expected - to me, obituaries are not lengthy historical narratives written like textbooks. They are shorter and pithier, and that is not what a lot of these presentations are. That's not to say that they're poorly written or uninteresting, they just weren't at all what I expected. It made it difficult to read in long bursts. This is the second book-from-podcasts I've read recently and they're reaffirming why I'm not a fan of podcasts... If you are a fan of that format and like your reading in shorter bursts as opposed to longer narratives that draw you in and won't let you go, you are probably a better audience for this one than I was...

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for access to this advanced reading copy for Kindle. I wanted to love Mobituaries because I always enjoy Mo Rocca on Wait Wait Don't Tell Me and My Grandmother's Ravioli. However, while Mobituaries is mildly amusing it's not laugh-out-loud funny. The anecdotes are interesting, but it's hard to read more than a few at a time. I suspect that the podcast comes off better, or perhaps if I had an audiobook that was narrated by Mo Rocca. Part of me thinks that perhaps Mo's timing and delivery and just as important as the joke, so they fall flat on the written page.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy of this book in return for an honest review.

This is a quirky book written by Mo Rocca, CBS Sunday Morning correspondent and humorist, paying homage to the people who fascinated him.  This is also a book based on his podcast, which you may also want to add to your playlist. Apparently, Rocca has always loved obituaries. I must say I always found it morbid, but now in my later years if I happen across them in the local newspaper, I stop to read it and pay my respects.  Rocca has taken an eclectic look at some global leaders, first to’s, Hollywood stars, innovators, television programs, objects, ideas and beliefs that didn’t receive the utmost respect in their passing.

It appears the research done by Rocca is extensive, on a vast array of subjects which I found utterly fascinating.  Some of my favorites:

Herbert Hoover.  My knowledge of him is that he responsible for Hoovervilles during the Great Depression.  But before his presidency, he was the Great Humanitarian who saved tens of millions from starvation.  That legacy was wiped out by the Great Depression, and history books don’t remember him kindly.

Chang and Eng Bunker.  While they were a sideshow curiosity, they went on to become very successful and wealthy entrepreneurs.   

Sammy Davis Jr.  Do you know how he lost his eye?

Beau Brummell.  Interesting tale of chapeau-wearing Macaronis and the song Yankee Doodle Dandy.

Prussia.  Learn how an entire kingdom disappears.

New Jersey Rest Stops.  Who knew my home state had such historic pit stops?

Presidents Behaving Badly.  I think we knew.

And some other oddities along the way, like station wagons, Frankenberry cereal, the long S and missing body parts of famous people.

Like I said, this quirky book is entertaining, witty and educational, and I’m sure you will enjoy it!

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A well researched, interesting and entertaining book that mixes humour and history.
The author is a gifted storyteller and I liked how he tells the stories.
I will surely look for his podcast as I enjoyed this book.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

Mobituaries, Great Lives Worth Reliving by Mo Rocca is a very funny walk down memory lane of all the things gone and mostly forgotten. Mo has a great storytelling style and I could have read for many hours hours more. I got a bit tired during the tree section, but all in all a great read!

I would recommend this to anyone to read, both young and old. This would be a great read for a flight. You’d start laughing, causing others around you to wonder what wonderful book you are reading.

I received this book to read from NetGalley and Simon & Schuster

I had heard about Mo's podcast but have not been able to listen yet. I was intrigued by the book and I'm so grateful for the opportunity to have had a chance to read it. A book full of obituaries which sounds kind of morbid but it's not at all. Mo has a unique writing style, mixing his humor in while giving us the history details. He tells us about some people you may never have heard of and some famous people that you maybe needed a little more attention. I learned a lot in this well researched book about various people, places and things! Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a very nice surprise. I wasn't very familiar with author Mo Rocca when I got the book, but I saw it on a New Releases list and I was immediately interested when I saw what it was about. I'm a bit of a nerd when it comes to how much I love pop culture, trivia, and even obituaries of "obscure" people, so I had a feeling this book might be right up my alley.

I'm glad I picked it up because it was very enjoyable to read. I immediately liked Rocca's writing style and now I'm anxious to explore more of his works. In this book, he uses humor, of course, but what's nice is that it's not some absurd collection of silly stories about people who have died. Mo Rocca obviously did a lot of research while writing this book. He not only shows a lot of knowledge of the things he writes about, but he also shows respect for those he features in the stories he shares. While there may be humor, he doesn't turn their lives into jokes. As a reader, I very much appreciated and respected that.

It was not only a fun book to read, but it was also incredibly informative. I learned far more than I expected to when I picked up the book. I'm very glad I read it and highly recommend it to others.

*I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for a fair review.

As a long-time fan of Mo Rocca and his unique story-telling style, I was excited to read this book. Mo Rocca does not disappoint. I laughed, I teared up, I marveled, but most of all I learned. Some of the material was familiar from his podcasts of the same name, but most was a revelation. Thoroughly enjoyable and well-researched, I’d recommend this to anyone who likes to see what bakes people tick.

I was intrigued when I saw this on NetGalley, I’ve always loved history and pop culture, I even majored in history while in college, so I knew that I wanted to read it. When I found out that I was going be able to review, I was excited and started on it as soon as I could. It was interesting to see Mr. Rocca’s take on history and the people who made it. I loved his writing style and will definitely be checking out his Mobituaries podcast.
It was interesting to read the back stories of some of the people. Like the fact that Herbert Hoover was called, “The Great Humanitarian”, or the snippets of Audrey Hepburn’s life growing up and how that made her the way she was as an adult. Her work with Unicef as a humanitarian. There were so many stories told, that the book keeps you sucked in. You wanted to know more about each person.
It’s not just people though. There’s dragons, cars, even countries. Mr. Rocca has a particular wit about him that I enjoyed, and will definitely be checking out not only his podcast, but also All the Presidents’ Pets. Very witty writing, while imparting great knowledge, it’s almost like you really aren’t learning, you’re having fun. Thank you so much for this story.
*I received an ARC from NetGalley and this is my honest and voluntary review.

Rocca researched very well, and has a nice balance of humour and history. I liked this because you can pick it up and read a 'mobituary' and then think about it for a while, and then pick it up and read another.

So...I really love Mo Rocca and his voice; the written book was not as good for me as his podcasts. Full disclosure: the electronic ARC I received was probably the worse one for format that I have ever read. Graphics where out of line, text was out of line, and the few line drawings/cartoons were not impressive. I hope the final release has at least some pictures, the ARC had none. I can’t imagine including Elizabeth Taylor, Audrey Hepburn, and others without pictures. The short podcast-like mobituaries were my favorite.

Obituaries are a great excuse to go back and look at a person and what they did, or did not do in their lives. With some really interesting factoids, forgotten history and some fascinating people we have either forgotten or never know about.

Sometimes the history digresses a bit, but overall a really fun book to read. With the combination of attitude, fluid writing and great subject matter, this is a pick up and put down book.

I wish to thank Net Galley and the publisher Simon and Schuster for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book. I have voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Mo is a contributor to Jane Pauley’s CBS Sunday Morning program. I have always enjoyed his broadcasts and now this book exposes you to so much more of his genius. He is a born storyteller.

If you love history this book will amaze and delight you. It is so funny you will be laughing out loud for most of it. This is not a book that you will want to read from cover to cover at one sitting. Please allow a lot of time to savor and learn as you go. Each page will reveal utterly unknown facts about places, people, history, Presidents and so much more. If you find yourself drawn to obituaries in your local paper than this book is for you. I dare you to read it and not find yourself quoting these unknown facts to anyone who will listen.

Mo Rocca, of CBS Sunday morning, gives us the"obituaries we didn't know we needed. Those people in history, who for whatever reason, aren't remembered the way they should be are now immortalized here. Some of these were hilarious and some sad, but all were written with Rocca's intelligent humor. If you're a fan on Mo Rocca or obscure bits of trivia, you will enjoy this book.

Thanks to Netgalley for an advanced copy.