A Life Among the Dead

Stories from an Irish Funeral Director

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A Life Among the Dead

By: David McGowan

Narrated by: David McGowan

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About this listen

THE IRISH TIMES BESTSELLER

'A profoundly compassionate, educational reflection on death' - The Irish Times

When death is a way of life . . .

In A Life Among the Dead, David McGowan, Ireland's best known Funeral Director, and subject of the Award-winning Netflix documentary The Funeral Director, guides us through the business, the science and the unexplained elements of death.

Alongside exploring the unique approach of Irish culture when it comes to grief and death, David seeks to demystify the process of dying and what happens to the body afterward.

The only certainty when we come into this life is that we are going to leave it, and yet it's something most people are reluctant to discuss or allow themselves to think about. David's mission is to open up conversations and encourage people to have an understanding of their loved ones wishes as well as their own.

Poignant, humorous and educational, this is an account of a life lived with purpose in the service of the dead.©2024 David McGowan

Business

Death & Dying

Grief & Loss

Personal Development

Professionals & Academics

Relationships

Sociology

Witty

Celebrity

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Critic reviews

A profoundly compassionate, educational reflection on death, and the rites we've developed to help us say goodbye and to support us in our grief. McGowan's wise elder words, so conversational in style, are like finding yourself in a cosy pub by the fire with an extraordinary community ritual leader, and getting the chance to talk to him for hours, about what only he knows. (Adrienne Murphy, The Irish Times)

Most relevant

I loved the humanity and heartfelt description of death and all things surrounding it. It’s a way of learning what happens after we die.
It goes into enough detail to know what happens but not too much detail to make you uncomfortable. From rural Ireland to the city of Chicago and back to Ireland to change the face of education in the approach to the preservation of a body after dying.
The book is something I believe that everyone who has a difficult time talking about death should read.
It’s one man’s journey to improve himself and be the best he can be but yet have huge amounts of respect empathy and care to know the the bodies he deals with are the most important consideration he has.