The Courage to Laugh (Paperback)

by Allen Klein (Author) "I call myself a jollytologist..." (more)
Key Phrases: denial humor, laughing place, Humorous Eyes, Seeing Demise, Auntie Rita (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
After his wife died from a rare liver disease, Klein wrote The Healing Power of Humor, which explained how laughter had helped him recover from her untimely death. Calling himself a "jollytologist," the author, who lectures and leads seminars on humor, enlarges on this earlier theme by presenting a welcome compilation of many personal stories culled from his research into death and dying. These show the important role of laughter as well as tears in the grieving process. Although Klein stresses that humor should not be used to cover up grief, he believes that, for the patient as well as loved ones, appropriate laughter is a refreshing and therapeutic tonic in the face of illness and death. Among the examples he provides are the sustaining power of humor for the terminally ill living in hospices, as well as the amazing capacity of AIDS patients to make jokes that ease their pain ("In my condition, I don't even buy green bananas anymore"). He describes the bravery of very sick children who seek out light moments to help them cope with their disease and includes the experiences of concentration camp survivors who sustained their will to live through humor. Never glib, Klein's affirmations allow a crucial measure of relief for moments of distress, or in the face of loss. Editor, David Groff; agent, Shelley Roth.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review
"The Courage to Laugh is not just about humor but about life."
-- Bernie Siegel, M.D., author of Love, Medicine & Miracles --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Tarcher; 1 edition (August 24, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0874779294
• ISBN-13: 978-0874779295
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #214,969 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Bon Courage!", October 16, 1998

By	[e-mail] (Summerville, SC) - See all my reviews

I purchased this book and read it after the deaths of three immediate family members (son, father, mother-in-law) occurred within a year's time. I reached a point wherein I asked myself, "How have I been able to cope with all the stress this year, and why am I coming unglued now?" The answer is in the title of the book. What helped me throughout the year was my wit. I realized that I needed to nurture my sense of humor as much as I needed food, clothing, shelter, love and prayer.

Through Allen Klein's book I discovered that, in the face of trauma, humor is as much a saving grace as are spiritual/religious beliefs.

I heartily recommend this book for anyone who is facing a terminal illness or who has a loved one who has a terminal illness, as well as for those who are at least a year past the death of their loved one (unless they have an extremely accessible wit).

Laughter is excellent medicine. Buy this book, but then remember to take the medicine! Laughing in the face of death, or finding light when one feels that life is dark, is a challenging task. It takes courage to search thoroughly and find humor's rainbow behind the dark clouds of grief.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Everyone should read this book!, January 30, 2000

By A Customer

It has been years since my parents died and I am very fortunate that no-one I am close to is seriously ill, so I really didn't have a reason to read this book, but I was intrigued by the title.

This is a wonderful book! It gives so much to the reader. It expands your heart and I found it giving me a certain feeling of grace - not that I have been spared - but a feeling of grace from reading about the wonderful people in this book.

Yes, it's full of wonderful, noble people, but these people are also blessed with a sense of humor and class.

I don't know if it would help someone who has never had a sense of humor, but I am positive that it would help anyone who has laughed at least once in their life.

Mr. Klein's approach is not condescending or "let's laugh at the victim" style at all. It is warm and joyous and a blessing to anyone who reads it.

This book will not bring you down! It may open a path of communication for you. I cannot say enough about this book.

Although I have no life threatening disease, I have suffered through horrible bouts of depression and this book was a God-send because it made me LAUGH! I am looking forward to reading his other books!

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars So Many Heroes, February 17, 2002

By	Nick Peterson (Aurora, CO USA) - See all my reviews

Much of our popular culture defines heroism as laughing in the face of death. Square-jawed heroes and voluptuous heroines in books and movies show us what they're made of as they make light of their impending demise.

Allen Klein writes about heroes, death, and laughter, too. Klein's heroes aren't cartoon characters, they're ordinary people. They are you and me. Klein's heroes haven't been chained in the path of an onrushing train. They're teathered to an IV during chemo-therapy or living with a chronic condition that won't kill them but just make life more difficult as time goes by. Klein's heroes have one thing in common; their ability to laugh at themselves and their situations. They've also given others The gift of laughing with them.

Allen Klein has done a remarkable thing. Rather than celebrate heroism by elevating it out of our grasp, he celebrates it by bringing it to a level where its accessible to all of us. Klein's heroism is facing our time here with dignity, optimism, and a sense of humor in spite of an uncertain future. That's living. That's dying. That's the point.