Matters of Death by Norman Weeks

With the grace, curiosity, and relentless eye for detail displayed in the first half of this series, author Norman Weeks explores the shadow side of life in his latest book, Matters of Death.

Sifting through the sands of history and culture to explore the taboos and traditions surrounding death and the hereafter, these interconnected essays form a narrative arc of his own discovery. From the moralism of Judaic death rituals and the Christian theology of predestination to the ethics of Dr. Death, these essays are a kaleidoscopic review of death as a philosophy, practice, and aspiration of humanity.

The second main section, “The Morbidity of Authors,” shifts towards self-reflection on his own time as a writer, the act of writing and writers themselves, probing cleverly at their complex relationships to love, friendship, contentment, and immortality. The final section, “Incidents of Death,” removes the anthropological lens to reveal vignettes of loss and mortality – tender, painful, and shocking. Some are fictionalized, while others are personal portraits from Weeks’ own experience with loss.

Though there are some thematic overlaps, and the crutch of rhetorical questions in essays can be exhausting, the ideas are wisely considered and expressed in an approachable way. Defying genre as a collection of prose, poetry, research, confession, and sermon, this is a powerful and ultimately hopeful musing on death, but also a meditation on life and all its potential.

Book Links