The Consolations of Mortality: Making Sense of Death Hardcover – August 23, 2016

A fascinating topic and one that is well tackled by the author, how we deal with the reality and concept of death/dying and how that infects our ordinary lives. I was less interested in some the examples and sometimes the analysis veered into pop-psychology, but over all a good bit of philosophy-in-sociology.

The Consolations of Mortality: Making Sense of Death by Andrew Stark is a free NetGalley ebook that I read in mid-July.If, like me, a reader finds themselves experiencing anxiety when they ruminate on their own mortality, this is a morbidly philosophical book that they may want to stay away from. However, when Stark strafes away from the lack of life (the fleetingness of thoughts, the real meaning of success and materialism, nostalgia as over-reminiscence, shaping one's world with chance encounters, intolerably identical moments stringing together to create total boredom, the conundrum of regret, and if public memories are more meaningful than private ones), he draws me in closer to his assuring and, yes, consoling prose.

After reading this book I realized more than ever how whatever sadness one may feel about death one would experience an inconceivable sadness eventually if one lived on and on and on and since nothing lasts forever we aren't missing out in reality This book will give you more peace as to why this is so. And it is not possible for us to live to infinity!

Okay, the premise was entertaining... and the first couple of chapters were insightful, but then he repeats and repeats and repeats with endless examples, some stupid, as though he were writing for an audience of dullards. I kept scanning, come on, come on Andrew, come on, don't just sling it, put some effort into this, take a risk! - tell me something I haven't considered!~

excellent copy

Good one.

thanks