A review by carliethompsonwriting
All the Living and the Dead by Hayley Campbell

emotional hopeful sad slow-paced

5.0

“Now I see all of it: death shows us what is buried in the living.”

Like many, I am afraid of death. I avoid discussions about grief, and avoid thinking about the death of my loved ones. I bought this book out of morbid curiosity, and i’m so grateful.

For a book about death, this is extremely comforting, and warm. 

Campbell travels the world interviewing people who work in death, dying and bereavement. Although she describes their day to day work in unflinching detail (tw: it may make you squeamish), it never becomes gratuitous. At one point in the book, Campbell sees something that she cannot forget, and this experience haunts the rest of the book. She walks the reader through her emotions, and by the end, you may feel enlightened.

The people that Campbell interviews have lives filled with the grief of others, but they never lose their humanity. This is a book about death, and the people who care for our bodies. While reading it, and hearing the voices of the nameless and faceless figures, I felt warm and comforted. They care, and hold great respect for the people and families that they serve. Knowing that many folks working with death care about the little things, is extremely comforting.

Campbell’s prose is beautiful, and she asks questions that you may be afraid to ask. It’s a poignant, and touching book. This may be one of my favourite books of 2024, and instantly my favourite non-fiction of all time.
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