Most of the people in this book will die before the fifth paragraph. You probably haven't heard of any of them. That doesn't mean it s a book about nobodies. That doesn't mean it s a book about death. The obituaries collected here are at times humorous and at times heartbreaking. They shine a light into forgotten places and forgotten lives. Inside are countless lessons of life, taught by people we all pass on the street every day.
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"Most of the people in this book will die before the fifth paragraph," Jim Sheeler informs us in the introduction to Obit. Sheeler, a Pulitzer Prize-winning feature writer for the Rocky Mountain News, has also been on the obituary beat for years and Obit is a sampling of his work there. Obituary writers are a dying breed. Only a handful of papers in the United States have a reporter out on the beat, finding people in the community whose lives they feel should be profiled and then spending hours going through shoeboxes and talking to people and fact-checking anecdotes and practical jokes. There is an art to the form, and Sheeler is one of the best contemporary practitioners in the United States. For most people, an obituary is the final account of a life, and to distill character, mission and the effect of a life takes a writer who understands the importance of the task and can establish character efficiently. Sheeler can do both. Take for example this line about a deli owner: "If Nick Papadakis heard a joke at 11:30 a.m., everyone on Main Street knew it by 1 o'clock," which establishes not only a propensity for the loquacious, but also Papadakis' place in the town fabric. Sometimes Sheeler's prose is so good that it transcends the individual's obituary to speak about mortality in general. Consider this passage: "Agate, population 70, is one of those towns that people describe as 'blink and you'll miss it.' Lois A. Engel loved living in the blink." Gale Walden lives in Urbana, Ill., and teaches at the University of New Orleans. She is the author of Same Blue Chevy --Chicago Sun-Times 6-13-2007<br /><br />"Jim Sheeler is a writer's writer. His book is amazing because he has the ability to capture the essence of life. The stories contained in these pages linger long after the final sentence is read." - --Tom Hallman Jr. Author of "Sam: The Boy Behind the Mask," and winner of the 2001 Pulitzer for Feature Writing.
"Most of the people in this book will die before the fifth paragraph," Jim Sheeler informs us in the introduction to Obit. Sheeler, a Pulitzer Prize-winning feature writer for the Rocky Mountain News, has also been on the obituary beat for years and Obit is a sampling of his work there. Obituary writers are a dying breed. Only a handful of papers in the United States have a reporter out on the beat, finding people in the community whose lives they feel should be profiled and then spending hours going through shoeboxes and talking to people and fact-checking anecdotes and practical jokes. There is an art to the form, and Sheeler is one of the best contemporary practitioners in the United States. For most people, an obituary is the final account of a life, and to distill character, mission and the effect of a life takes a writer who understands the importance of the task and can establish character efficiently. Sheeler can do both. Take for example this line about a deli owner: "If Nick Papadakis heard a joke at 11:30 a.m., everyone on Main Street knew it by 1 o'clock," which establishes not only a propensity for the loquacious, but also Papadakis' place in the town fabric. Sometimes Sheeler's prose is so good that it transcends the individual's obituary to speak about mortality in general. Consider this passage: "Agate, population 70, is one of those towns that people describe as 'blink and you'll miss it.' Lois A. Engel loved living in the blink." Gale Walden lives in Urbana, Ill., and teaches at the University of New Orleans. She is the author of Same Blue Chevy --Chicago Sun-Times 6-13-2007
--Chicago Sun-Times
“ You probably won’t have heard of any of the people eulogized in Obit, but they will remind you of the variety of humans on earth and the absolute certainty that no matter how powerful a personality, eventually the body goes, and that what remains stays not only in people’s hearts, but in their stories.”
—Chicago Sun-Times --Chicago Sun-Times
"Most of the people in this book will die before the fifth paragraph," Jim Sheeler informs us in the introduction to Obit. Sheeler, a Pulitzer Prize-winning feature writer for the Rocky Mountain News, has also been on the obituary beat for years and Obit is a sampling of his work there. Obituary writers are a dying breed. Only a handful of papers in the United States have a reporter out on the beat, finding people in the community whose lives they feel should be profiled and then spending hours going through shoeboxes and talking to people and fact-checking anecdotes and practical jokes. There is an art to the form, and Sheeler is one of the best contemporary practitioners in the United States. For most people, an obituary is the final account of a life, and to distill character, mission and the effect of a life takes a writer who understands the importance of the task and can establish character efficiently. Sheeler can do both. Take for example this line about a deli owner: "If Nick Papadakis heard a joke at 11:30 a.m., everyone on Main Street knew it by 1 o'clock," which establishes not only a propensity for the loquacious, but also Papadakis' place in the town fabric. Sometimes Sheeler's prose is so good that it transcends the individual's obituary to speak about mortality in general. Consider this passage: "Agate, population 70, is one of those towns that people describe as 'blink and you'll miss it.' Lois A. Engel loved living in the blink." Gale Walden lives in Urbana, Ill., and teaches at the University of New Orleans. She is the author of Same Blue Chevy --Chicago Sun-Times 6-13-2007
"Most of the people in this book will die before the fifth paragraph," Jim Sheeler informs us in the introduction to Obit. Sheeler, a Pulitzer Prize-winning feature writer for the Rocky Mountain News, has also been on the obituary beat for years and Obit is a sampling of his work there. Obituary writers are a dying breed. Only a handful of papers in the United States have a reporter out on the beat, finding people in the community whose lives they feel should be profiled and then spending hours going through shoeboxes and talking to people and fact-checking anecdotes and practical jokes. There is an art to the form, and Sheeler is one of the best contemporary practitioners in the United States. For most people, an obituary is the final account of a life, and to distill character, mission and the effect of a life takes a writer who understands the importance of the task and can establish character efficiently. Sheeler can do both. Take for example this line about a deli owner: "If Nick Papadakis heard a joke at 11:30 a.m., everyone on Main Street knew it by 1 o'clock," which establishes not only a propensity for the loquacious, but also Papadakis' place in the town fabric. Sometimes Sheeler's prose is so good that it transcends the individual's obituary to speak about mortality in general. Consider this passage: "Agate, population 70, is one of those towns that people describe as 'blink and you'll miss it.' Lois A. Engel loved living in the blink." Gale Walden lives in Urbana, Ill., and teaches at the University of New Orleans. She is the author of Same Blue Chevy --Chicago Sun-Times 6-13-2007
--Chicago Sun-Times
“ You probably won’t have heard of any of the people eulogized in Obit, but they will remind you of the variety of humans on earth and the absolute certainty that no matter how powerful a personality, eventually the body goes, and that what remains stays not only in people’s hearts, but in their stories.”
—Chicago Sun-Times --Chicago Sun-Times
"Most of the people in this book will die before the fifth paragraph," Jim Sheeler informs us in the introduction to Obit. Sheeler, a Pulitzer Prize-winning feature writer for the Rocky Mountain News, has also been on the obituary beat for years and Obit is a sampling of his work there. Obituary writers are a dying breed. Only a handful of papers in the United States have a reporter out on the beat, finding people in the community whose lives they feel should be profiled and then spending hours going through shoeboxes and talking to people and fact-checking anecdotes and practical jokes. There is an art to the form, and Sheeler is one of the best contemporary practitioners in the United States. For most people, an obituary is the final account of a life, and to distill character, mission and the effect of a life takes a writer who understands the importance of the task and can establish character efficiently. Sheeler can do both. Take for example this line about a deli owner: "If Nick Papadakis heard a joke at 11:30 a.m., everyone on Main Street knew it by 1 o'clock," which establishes not only a propensity for the loquacious, but also Papadakis' place in the town fabric. Sometimes Sheeler's prose is so good that it transcends the individual's obituary to speak about mortality in general. Consider this passage: "Agate, population 70, is one of those towns that people describe as 'blink and you'll miss it.' Lois A. Engel loved living in the blink." Gale Walden lives in Urbana, Ill., and teaches at the University of New Orleans. She is the author of Same Blue Chevy --Chicago Sun-Times 6-13-2007
From the Author
In describing the audience for whom this book was written Jim Sheeler said, "Anyone who ever plans to die."
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
An Obit Collection Meant to Be Savored,
By
This review is from: OBIT. Inspiring Stories of Ordinary People who Led Extraordinary Lives (Hardcover)
Jim Sheeler notes in his introduction: "The death beat is supposed to be the worst job in the newsroom. For those of us who understand, it's journalism's best kept secret -- a place of raw emotion and endless wisdom, a place where you find lessons of life more brilliant that anything you'll find from the traditionally designated 'noteworthy' people who usually appear in the rest of the newspaper." I've been writing obits for years, yet after reading this book I now aspire to cover the death beat like Sheeler does -- with compassion and grace.
The deceased are the main focus of each chapter, but Sheeler is there too, buried in the spaces between each inked line. A master wordsmith and medium, he has the uncanny ability to give a voice to ghosts and record their legacy. Read this collection, and you too will hear the whispered tales of nurses and bartenders, pilots and farmers, mountain makers and carousel caretakers. Take your time, though. "Obit" is simply too rich to read in one sitting. This collection of "inspiring stories of ordinary people who led extraordinary lives" is meant to be savored. As such, I devoted the last half hour of each day to a different deceased man or woman, then carried their stories into Morpheus' realm. There they inspired my dreams. And when I woke up, hours later, the dead were alive once again, filling my mind with thoughts of love, loss, courage and generosity.
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Brief yet heartwarming portrayals of men and women who led energetic, compassionate, sometimes humorous, always shining lives,
By Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: OBIT. Inspiring Stories of Ordinary People who Led Extraordinary Lives (Hardcover)
Pulitzer Prize-winning feature writer Jim Sheeler presents Obit: Inspiring Stories of Ordinary People who Led Extraordinary Lives, an anthology of brief yet heartwarming portrayals of men and women who led energetic, compassionate, sometimes humorous, always shining lives. Each biographical portrayal is only a few pages long - yet that is more than enough space to expand beyond the traditional printed obituary and reveal the wonder, the color, and the personality infused into each individual's unique life. Obit is ultimately an anthology celebrating life, not death, and an emotionally moving read whether explored a few pages at a time or all at once.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
OBIT,
By
This review is from: OBIT. Inspiring Stories of Ordinary People who Led Extraordinary Lives (Hardcover)
OBIT. Inspiring Stories of Ordinary People who Led Extraordinary Lives. This book is reminiscent of well written Readers Digest short stories. Obit will force the reader into reflection on one's own fleeting life. When the time comes and none shall escape it. Will the last things said about you just be a "footnote on the backside of life"? Or will the reading of your obituary bring a tear to a strangers face?
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First Sentence:
EVERY DAY, THE BOY COULD BE FOUND at the same place on that big Missouri farm. Read the first page Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Brent Davies, Warren Conner, Carolyn Jaffe, Daniel Seltzer, George Scordo, John Scordo, Bob Engel, Glenn Davis, Harold Gray, Lois Engel, Bronze Star, Dan Curtis, Eleanor Foley, Eric Rice, Griffith Street, Ryan Sanders, San Francisco, Valentine's Day, Aurora Central, Claude Conner, Dan Sarlo, Dean Coombs, Frances Mallory, George Evans, Great Depression New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Front Flap | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Flap | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
EVERY DAY, THE BOY COULD BE FOUND at the same place on that big Missouri farm. Read the first page Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Brent Davies, Warren Conner, Carolyn Jaffe, Daniel Seltzer, George Scordo, John Scordo, Bob Engel, Glenn Davis, Harold Gray, Lois Engel, Bronze Star, Dan Curtis, Eleanor Foley, Eric Rice, Griffith Street, Ryan Sanders, San Francisco, Valentine's Day, Aurora Central, Claude Conner, Dan Sarlo, Dean Coombs, Frances Mallory, George Evans, Great Depression New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Front Flap | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Flap | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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