The book, a collection of essays, cover various topics including the global veneration and universalization of Anne Frank, the commercialization of Jewish history in places like Harbin, China, and indifference to rising antisemitism.

Author Dara Horn recounts an inspiring event for the book was at a Nashville quiz bowl tournament in the 1990s.

The Southerners were utterly convinced that Rogers was speaking directly to them through their TV screens — just like they absolutely knew that Jesus loved them.

[2] Writing about the Shakespeare play The Merchant of Venice, Horn argues that taking the play in through Jewish eyes reveals "just how deep the gaslighting went," as critics ignore phrases such as, "Certainly the Jew is the very devil incarnate" to insist that Shakespeare portrayed Jewish character Shylock's humanity.

[1] As Horn relistens to an audio version of the play, she realized she had been conditioned to accept Shylock's famous soliloquy "Hath not a Jew eyes" as Shakespeare's attempt at humanization, rather than justification that he is treated poorly because there is something repulsive about him, such as his Jewishness.

In Horn's view, Frank's words are inspirational as people look for universal lessons rather than attending to the actual persecution of Jews.

[1] Horn then turns to Harbin, China, a city that sought to attract Jewish entrepreneurs at the end of the 19th century to construct its buildings and run its hotels.

Today, Harbin advertises its "Jewish Heritage", which Horn quips should be renamed "Property Seized from Dead or Expelled Jews.

"[4] Historian Pamela Nadell in the Washington Post called People Love Dead Jews a "riveting, gorgeously written book".

[3] Tablet magazine produced a companion podcast, Adventures With Dead Jews, hosted by Horn, where she explores topics in Jewish history that didn't make it into the book.