In Tribute collects the eulogies given in memoriam of influential men and women of the twentieth century. In Tribute offers the stirring words of Cardinal Roger Mahoney about the strength and perseverance of Cesar Chavez, and the formidable job Benjamin E. Mays took on in trying to make sense of the enormous significance of Dr. Martin Luther King's life and sudden death. Also included in the book are words composed to mark the deaths of some of America's most gifted and beloved performers and artists, among them Louis Armstrong, Robert Frost, Orson Welles, Walt Disney, and George Burns. Other eulogies include those for star athletes such as Arthur Ashe and Mickey Mantle, and political leaders including John E Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, Richard Nixon, and Dwight D. Eisenhower.

The book is organized alphabetically by public figure. A brief biography of both the deceased and the eulogizer precedes the speech. A series of appendixes that finish the book include lists of the deceased and their eulogizers, as well as a I short list of birth and death dates.