...Or Not to Be: A Collection of Suicide Notes (Paperback)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

. . . Or Not to Be is described, by its own editor, as "pornography." It's also oddly fascinating, a collection of suicide notes by the famous, including Kurt Cobain, Vincent Van Gogh, Diane Arbus, Sylvia Plath, and Virginia Woolf. Also included are poignant last words from the utterly obscure, including an anonymous Siberian who duly noted that "the snow will cover my footsteps," and a man who wrote "Bow wow and good-bye, Pepper," to his dog. Of particular interest in the collection are suicide notes by Dorothy Parker, who survived, and Ken Kesey, who was pulling a prank on the feds. Etkind also offers much factual material in the annotations to the many selections.

Product Description

The first book of its kind, . . . Or Not to Be offers rare insights into the lives--and deaths--of such luminaries as Vincent Van Gogh, Sylvia Plath, Diane Arbus, Jim Jones, Anne Sexton, Hermann Goering, Kurt Cobain, and Yukio Mishima, via their last letters and suicide notes.

Product Details

• Paperback: 114 pages
• Publisher: Riverhead Trade; 1st Riverhead Trade Pbk. Ed edition (February 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1573225800
• ISBN-13: 978-1573225809
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.2 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #228,795 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #52 in	Books > Health, Mind & Body > Psychology & Counseling > Suicide
  #88 in	Books > Health, Mind & Body > Death & Grief > Suicide

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting, August 3, 2000

By	C. Buechner (Texas) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The suicide notes themselves as well as the similarities between them were quite interesting. The author's comments about the the narrow vision experienced by the suicicidal, while perhaps being psychologically accurate showed a complete lack of understandign of the emotional experiences of the depressed. His tone implied that he felt those who committed suicide were not intelligent enough to see any other way out of their situations. The author himself doesn't seem to have any idea about what it is like to feel so completely lost and desperate. The commentary was also rather repetitive and didn't seem to offer much insight other than the fact that suicidal people see no other way to end their suffering.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Getting The Last Word, August 15, 2001

By	Gypsychick "gypsychick" (miami, fl USA) - See all my reviews

It is quite interesting to review the very last words written of one who has chosen to enter a new phase of this time we call eternity. Having read a suicide note "in person" so to speak, I was shocked to realize what seems so obvious. The last word is finally gotten and there is no disputing it. In many instances a very few words in this eclectic collection speak volumes about the life left behind such as the man who wrote "Somebody had to do it. Self awareness is everything" or the young guy who penned "I am sorry...I want to keep Dad company." More than just a listing of comments arranged to titillate, the quotes and commentary are accompanied by some brief histories as well as background and psychological profiles. Who knows why anyone does what they do? The author speaks of a man who left a note reading simply "$36" which was also the amount of cash found in the man's mouth. No one can really be sure of anything but if you have ever lost a loved one to suicide, you are not alone and this collection is a way of sharing the pain of the unexplained.

22 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars I don't read., January 9, 2000

By	Matthew Ronne (Greeley, Colorado) - See all my reviews

I rarely read anything. But this book was read in 5 days. It is so interesting and captivating to a manic-depressive as myself. To really look into the final words of people who saw no hope. The downfall was the editorial comments of author Mark Etkind. I enjoyed looking into the poetic/artistic meaning behing the words. He took everything at face value and with a grain of salt. It can become quite anoying. Other than that, it is a great book for anyone with an infatuation with death, and the romance of suicide.