Encounters With Death: A Compendium of Anthropomorphic Personifications of Death from Historical to Present Day Phenomenon [Paperback]

Leilah Wendell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 1996 | ISBN-10: 0944087094 | ISBN-13: 978-0944087091 | Edition: 1st

A unique compendium of anthropomorphic personifications of death from historical to present day phenomenon including traditional and non-traditional death encounters told in the words of those who have experienced this growing phenomenon.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Ms. Wendell's latest book "Encounters With Death" brings her subject closer to the mainstream... -- Fate magazine

About the Author

Leilah Wendell

Product Details

• Paperback: 123 pages
• Publisher: Westgate Pr; 1st edition (June 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0944087094
• ISBN-13: 978-0944087091
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #445,649 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars There's much more that could've been said, December 12, 2005

By 

Stefan Isaksson "www.stefanisaksson.se" (Malmoe, Sweden) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Encounters With Death: A Compendium of Anthropomorphic Personifications of Death from Historical to Present Day Phenomenon (Paperback)

Westgate Press is a publisher like no one else.

Because they deal with death. In all ways imaginable. On their website one is able to purchase numerous books, works of art, and things like that that are all related to death and especially the Angel of Death: Azrael. Not only does Leilah Wendell (together with husband Daniel Kempf) run the company and the website, she's also the owner of a house dedicated to her favourite subject, simply called The House of Death. According to her biography, Mrs. Wendell is "the world's foremost recognized researcher of Death personifications and encounters", and while I'm not entirely sure that's the real truth, it still wouldn't surprise if she indeed was just that.

I mean, it's not everyday that I run into people who've devoted their entire lives to the exploration of Death (actually, this is my first time...), but Mrs. Wendell really do appear to know what she's talking about. She's written several books, both ritualistic ones and poetic ones, but the one that's gotten the most attention within the world of the occult is Our Name is Melancholy - The Complete Books of Azrael (also reviewed by me here on Amazon).

But anyhow, this review is about Encounters with Death. (The reason for the rather lengthy introduction is simply that I assume that not too many Swedes know about Westgate, and I think they deserve all the attention they can get). Encounters with Death is a beautiful book; on its cover one finds Death and The Young Girl, by Adolf Hering, and several of the pages have pictures worth looking at both once and twice. Furthermore, the size of the book is very pleasant - a little larger than a standard sized Swedish paperback - and the type-face is simple and stylistically pure.

Well, so much for the aesthetics. What about the content? Well, unfortunately not as great. Mrs. Wendell tries her best to help people who look for some sort of introduction to the subject of Death (but obviously, she in NO WAY WHATSOEVER endorses suicide or any such thoughts; it's obvious that she's very pro-life). In order to do this she's scanned numerous books and other sources for information, which has enabled her to offer a short summary of how different cultures have related to/looked at Death throughout the ages. The second half of the book is made up of stories from Westgate's newsletter, where people share their personal experiences and meetings with what they've believed to have been the Angel of Death.

However, the book is unable to live up to its promises. The stories from the newsletter starts as early as on page 75, and this latter section of the book is, quite frankly, not very interesting. Page 1-75 furthermore contains several pictures, so in the end, the amount of data offered by Mrs. Wendell isn't very impressive. The bibliography is, however, quite large, and so in theory the book could've offered a lot more information. But I'm sad to say that the fun ends all too quickly.

Still, the idea behind the book is great, her ambitions are admirable, and Mrs. Wendell herself is definitely a fascinating human. Obviously this isn't enough to make a masterpiece, but the book isn't very expensive, so in the end it's still worth buying.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Really nice overview, August 27, 2002

By 

John C. Martine "Book Junky" (Near Chicago) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Encounters With Death: A Compendium of Anthropomorphic Personifications of Death from Historical to Present Day Phenomenon (Paperback)

This book has a bit of everything a history of the Anthromorphic Personification of Death in various cultures, a overview i=of Death in Art, Literature and Movies and a selection of peoples encounters with the Grim Reaper Himself, which was more interesting than you might imagine. It's a nice little volume and I really think that you will not be disappointed in it.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply Nothing Else Like It, July 15, 2000

By 

Mv2.3 "This Is My Fake Name Badge" (In the Aether and in the Other) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Encounters With Death: A Compendium of Anthropomorphic Personifications of Death from Historical to Present Day Phenomenon (Paperback)

Does it have to do with Death personified (or not personified, as some of the first-hand accounts relate)? Then you will find it in this short but packed tome. You will find the history of Death personified. You will see various images of Death from different eras. You will read about Death in popular culture. And, you will come to know Death from the recorded encounters of people who have met Death in one form or another. This fascinating read can be quite chilling at times and requires an open mind "for best results".