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Friday, February 22, 2008

The Sun is Shining, The Leaves on the Trees are Budding,

posted by on February 22 at 16:24 PM

scaled.books-500.jpg

…it’s clearly time to think about death in general and, in particular, Charles Mudede’s lovely books lead from this issue, about David Shields’ new book, The Thing About Life Is That One Day You’ll Be Dead.

This is a book review, and a very good one:

If there is a leading theme in Shields’s work, it is exposure in a world where there is nothing left but humans, their bodies, fears, families. Not even the religion of literature offers us protection from the elements of reality. This is why Shields’s language is so clear, so transparent. Everything from the world makes its way through the words to the reader with little or no distortion.

But it’s also about something that we should all remember when it’s gorgeous outside and everything seems to exist for our pleasure:

Science has more than doubled our life spans but at the terrible price of living with the truth—that life is a process that has no shaper or shelter, that life is not about humans but about something else, something out of our control.

These sorts of days are always better when there’s a little death lingering at the edges. I promise that if you read this book review right now, it will improve your weekend. You can yell at me on Monday if it doesn’t work. Go read it.

RSS icon Comments

1

Well, yeah, we extended life but not what happens to you.

On the other hand, reduced heart risk means less dementia and other related things ...

Posted by Will in Seattle | February 22, 2008 5:15 PM
2

Author and Mudede need a good hug, stat.

Posted by chicagogaydude | February 22, 2008 6:52 PM

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