rachelemm's review
4.0
This was definitely a case of right book, right time. A family member recently passed away and I was looking for a way to process that reality; this book helped me to do that. Tom Morton's exploration of death and grief was honest without being insensitive. His frank insight into what happens after we die with a focus on the importance of a definitive point where loved ones get to say goodbye was as moving as it was educational. Morton's own brushes with death forced him to not only face his own mortality but that of his fellow man leading him to set up as an independent funeral celebrant in the Shetlands. The stories he shares of some of the services he has officiated were touching and showed that every funeral is different and can be tailored to suit the needs of those left behind. Morton's book is bang up to date and acknowledges the Covid-19 pandemic we are living through often lending it biblical proportions by referring to it as the plague. He suggests ways to share funerals with loved ones even within Covid restrictions using streaming technology such as Facebook Live. Morton dedicates a few pages to practical links and resources but in my opinion it's nothing more than you would find from a Google search. The real value of this book is its willingness to deal head on with how to prepare for it and how to move on from loss and death, a fate that will in time befall us all.
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