Death: The Great Mystery of Life Herbie Brennan2002

From the burial rites of the earliest humans to the current price of freezing one's dead body, this engaging study confronts the mystery of death—leaving no question or topic unexplored. In Death, Herbie Brennan dissects the biological processes by which we die, delving into the history of plagues, wars and natural disasters. What were the most prolific killers of our ancestors? How are you most likely to perish? What can you look forward to after that, if anything? Brennan probes these questions and dozens of others in a beguiling manner, turning the most frightening concepts into comforting revelations. He devotes a large portion of the book to "good news"—research into the afterlife, the tranquillity of near-death experiences, accounts of radio communication with the deceased (and how to make audio tapes of such phenomena), and out of body experiences. Surveying the world, Brennan reveals the surprising similarities and differences in cultural manifestations of this universal event. The result is a comprehensive account from multiple perspectives that is captivating, mysterious, and wonderfully reassuring about this most feared of human experiences.