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lattelibrarian's review
4.0
How refreshing! Books about death and dying never get old, a the act of dying and the moment of death is one of the big mysteries of humankind. However, what isn't mysterious is the ways in which we culturally react to death and dying, and that, for some reason, provokes a lot of questions. How do we comfort the grieving? How do we know that the dying are comfortable? How can we prepare ourselves for the inevitable?
Tisdale answers it all, from ways in which we dispose of bodies to the necessities of having a plan in place for once you pass on, too. In between these long bouts of explaining all the nuances and options you have, she also adds little tidbits of advice, such as not to say that someone's loved one is in a better place.
As a nurse, end-of-life practitioner, and Buddhist, Tisdale takes on a fresh and calm perspective on a totally taboo subject. With anecdotal examples, statistics, and observations from the dying themselves, Sallie Tisdale has created a book that speaks to even the ones most frightened of this thing we call death. It's oddly comforting, and agues that death and dying need not be complicated in and of itself.
Overall, I found this to be a very quotable book, and an interesting one as well! Advice for Future Corpses is well worth reading, and the appendices are even more well worth discussing.
Review cross-listed here!
Tisdale answers it all, from ways in which we dispose of bodies to the necessities of having a plan in place for once you pass on, too. In between these long bouts of explaining all the nuances and options you have, she also adds little tidbits of advice, such as not to say that someone's loved one is in a better place.
As a nurse, end-of-life practitioner, and Buddhist, Tisdale takes on a fresh and calm perspective on a totally taboo subject. With anecdotal examples, statistics, and observations from the dying themselves, Sallie Tisdale has created a book that speaks to even the ones most frightened of this thing we call death. It's oddly comforting, and agues that death and dying need not be complicated in and of itself.
Overall, I found this to be a very quotable book, and an interesting one as well! Advice for Future Corpses is well worth reading, and the appendices are even more well worth discussing.
Review cross-listed here!
kwheeles's review
5.0
Wonderful! Well-written, with humor and a soft touch. Some Buddhist insight (writer is Zen Buddhist). Helped me understand experiences with my father. Prepared me to think about the next time I am in a position to help another, and to think about my own death. Great book.
lkthomas07's review against another edition
5.0
Really appreciated this book! Lots of good info. There was a lot in the appendices that could have been in the book itself - and also made me wish I had the physical book so I could have a copy of the questions in appendix 1. Really well done. I loved the narrator too.
brassbooks's review against another edition
3.0
This was going to be a two star book until I got to the chapter of ‘that moment’ and beyond. Apparently I just love reading about death and what happens to bodies after that. I’m less interested in what happens before.
pattydsf's review
5.0
”I have never died, so this entire book is a fool’s advice. Birth and death are the only human acts we cannot practice.”
“We love our endangered lives, these swift, fleeting lives changing before our eyes. Lire as it is. Luminous, everyday, extraordinary life. Do we always know that with every birth comes a death? That the most tender and complete meeting has to end?”
I checked this book out of the library before I had any idea that CORVID-19 was going to change our lives. My husband and I have been procrastinating about our deaths since before we met each other almost 50 years ago. Neither of us are good at facing this stuff. So I had borrowed this book thinking it might get me motivated. Instead, once quarantine started, I put it aside.
In the last few weeks, I knew that I had to move ahead with reading this and other library books. Virginia is starting open back up and the library probably will want their materials returned. I had to either read this or return it.
There was another reason that I wanted to read this book. I remembered that Tisdale is a good and interesting author. I read her book, The Best Thing I Ever Tasted: The Secret of Food, many years ago and liked her writing tremendously. I had hopes that her writings about death would also be absorbing.
I was correct. It did not take me long to read this book. Not my favorite topic, but death is part of life. I need to consider it more carefully. Tisdale is a good writer. She is also a good person to write about death since she has been a nurse in palliative care. She has seen a fair share of people dying and has assisted them.
This is an excellent book told with Tisdale’s own experiences which is very helpful. Also useful are the appendices. I have started working my way through them and answering her questions. Maybe I will get my husband to do the same.
“We love our endangered lives, these swift, fleeting lives changing before our eyes. Lire as it is. Luminous, everyday, extraordinary life. Do we always know that with every birth comes a death? That the most tender and complete meeting has to end?”
I checked this book out of the library before I had any idea that CORVID-19 was going to change our lives. My husband and I have been procrastinating about our deaths since before we met each other almost 50 years ago. Neither of us are good at facing this stuff. So I had borrowed this book thinking it might get me motivated. Instead, once quarantine started, I put it aside.
In the last few weeks, I knew that I had to move ahead with reading this and other library books. Virginia is starting open back up and the library probably will want their materials returned. I had to either read this or return it.
There was another reason that I wanted to read this book. I remembered that Tisdale is a good and interesting author. I read her book, The Best Thing I Ever Tasted: The Secret of Food, many years ago and liked her writing tremendously. I had hopes that her writings about death would also be absorbing.
I was correct. It did not take me long to read this book. Not my favorite topic, but death is part of life. I need to consider it more carefully. Tisdale is a good writer. She is also a good person to write about death since she has been a nurse in palliative care. She has seen a fair share of people dying and has assisted them.
This is an excellent book told with Tisdale’s own experiences which is very helpful. Also useful are the appendices. I have started working my way through them and answering her questions. Maybe I will get my husband to do the same.
ashleyholstrom's review
4.0
Sallie Tisdale spent more than a decade working in palliative care, so if anyone knows about the dying process, it’s her. This book is both a compassionate guidebook and compilation of anecdotes from the many deaths she’s witnessed. If you only read one book about death positivity, make it this one.
✨ From Embrace Life with These Books about Death Positivity at Crooked Reads.
✨ From Embrace Life with These Books about Death Positivity at Crooked Reads.
noahbw's review
5.0
I appreciate how Tisdale weaves together medical/physiological perspectives, religious and ethical teachings, and personal reflection -- it makes this book feel very holistic. She gives some very practical suggestions as well, but I wonder if it would be easy to find these when you need them (since they're integrated so well into the work as a whole).