Living While Dying

The book’s central narrative, emotional, and stylistic elements, along with its secondary thematic considerations, are tied to the author’s consideration of what it means to continue living while dying. It is important to note that even though the author’s reasons for exploring this issue are defined by death becoming a more immediate presence and influence on her, her considerations are not limited to situations in which an individual is facing terminal illness – or, by implication, any other situation in which death is near. Several times throughout the book, in fact, she suggests that because death is the inevitable end of every human life, the question of how to still live fully, well, and honestly in the face of that end is one that everyone needs to consider, and explore, and come to at least some kind of answer about.

The author’s contemplations...