Death : The Trip of a Lifetime (Paperback)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this surprising, occasionally sobering but often lighthearted travelogue designed to accompany a PBS series, Palmer, a broadcaster, playwright and filmmaker, examines death images across the world, interviewing people or just poking around and examining horror books, cartoons and other entertainments. He notes the tranquil names often given to cemeteries, like the ubiquitous Pleasant Hill or Taiwan's Happy Peace Garden. He reminds us that death is celebrated in holidays commemorating public figures and war heroes. In lively anecdotes, Palmer reports on the attitudes towards death declared by a Ghanaian witch doctor, a Buddhist priest, an AIDS hospice patient, the head of a cryonics foundation and a failed suicide. The author concludes by describing concepts of afterlife as held by religions, most of which promise some form of immortality. Illustrations not seen by PW . $50,000 ad/promo; author tour.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

The aging Sixties generation now confronts death in this nonfiction romp that rivals Evelyn Waugh's classic The Loved One (1951) as a laugh-a-minute examination of death rituals and customs. Not really psychology or anthropology per se, Palmer's book is a tour of such death-related places as a death theme park in Taiwan (the title of the book is a ride at the park), a burial in Ghana (where funerals are so lavish that families usually have to store the body in a morgue for several years while saving up for the wake), the Alcor Life Extension Foundation (a cryonics facility), a funeral parlor in Florida that features a drive-up window, and much, much more. While this title will not add much to a serious social sciences collection, it is quite interesting and entertaining. In addition, it is a companion volume to a PBS series that debuted in October. Recommended for public libraries.
- Mary Ann Hughes, Neill P.L., Pullman, Wash.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: DIANE Publishing Co (March 1998)
• ISBN-10: 0062509543
• ISBN-13: 978-0062509543
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,770,514 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's only death, why worry?, January 28, 2004

By	Daniel K. West (Columbus, Ohio United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Death: The Trip of a Lifetime (Hardcover)

A friend loaned me a copy of this book when I was doing some serious soul searching. It took me almost 6 months to work up the courage to read Mr. Palmer's book because I did not want to confront 'death' even by opening a book about the subject. When I finally did start reading it I found it hard to put down. Greg Palmer is alternately funny and somber, dealing deftly with each situation as he tries to understand what 'death' means. From his first experience with death, through the many people he encounters along the way, Mr. Palmer provides a much wider view of the world than we are used to. The book is a difficult journey, undertaken both with humor and great love. I recommend this book to anyone seeking an understanding of death and how it affects those left behind.
Do not fear death, come to understand it, we only fear the things we do not know.