The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Tolstoy explores the complexities of dying, highlighting the suffering and isolation Ivan faces. The character Gerasim embodies the ideal death worker, offering compassionate presence.

Alexandra Vassilaros uses writing workshops, born from her personal experience with grief, to help others navigate loss. Her Make Meaning Workshop emphasizes that grief can lead to grace, love, and transformation.

Marisa Renee Lee's Grief is Love explores grief as a form of love, addressing the complexities of witnessing loss and the weight of multiple griefs. Lee encourages embracing love’s enduring strength despite death.

Joanna Macy co-authored A Year with Rilke, offering daily passages from Rainer Maria Rilke’s work, exploring life, love, and death. Rilke urges embracing death as part of life, not its enemy.

Love Notes to Grievers by Angela Morris offers solace to those dealing with loss, reflecting on grief's depth and beauty. Morris shares how writing about death helps her stay present and connected to others.

Comfort food rituals around death have existed for millennia, from Neanderthals to modern times. Global funeral dishes, like Belgian soul bread, Chinese jai, and Jamaican johnny cakes, offer comfort and community.

In Inside Out, Sadness, often seen as a negative emotion, plays a crucial role in connecting people through loss. Embracing sadness helps us process grief and identity, uniting us with others in response.

David Brooks contrasts "résumé virtues" (career skills) with "eulogy virtues" (kindness, love, bravery), urging us to focus on deep character. He argues true success comes from inner growth, not external achievement.

Photographer Rankin, inspired by the death of his parents, created "Alive: In the Face of Death," a portrait series of people confronting death, highlighting the power of discussing mortality with empowerment.

Frank Ostaseski, cofounder of the Zen Hospice Project, teaches how embracing death helps us live fully. His "Five Invitations" guide us to be present, compassionate, and open to life's impermanence.

Barbara Karnes, a hospice pioneer, wrote about end-of-life care to help families understand the dying process. Her work focuses on simplifying death-related conversations and honoring its sacredness.

The Measure by Nikki Erlick explores a world where everyone knows the exact length of their life, prompting profound questions about love, mortality, and society. It challenges readers to rethink how we live.

Dying Prepared features Francesca Arnoldy, a community doula and death literacy educator, sharing insights on navigating mortality, preparing for death, and the importance of compassion and human connection.

Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin is a powerful love story set in 1950s Paris, exploring grief, identity, and passion. The tale of Paul, torn between two loves, is a profound journey of emotional turmoil.

In "Ode to Lint," Devorah Medwin reflects on how memories, experiences, and time weave through the fabric of our lives. Lint becomes a metaphor for the fragments of our past, holding answers to it all.

The narrator reflects on their deep friendship with Sushi, recalling shared moments of joy and wisdom. Sushi's strength, love, and spirituality inspire acceptance of life's challenges, including death, with peace and surrender.

A disheveled old man approaches the narrator, asking for food, not money. After spending time together, the narrator feels an unspoken connection. The next day, the old man is gone, leaving only a memory.

Amy Bloom's memoir, "In Love," recounts her husband's journey through early-onset Alzheimer's and his choice to end his life at Dignitas in Switzerland. Bloom reflects on caregiving, terminal illness, and the emotional process.

Joanne Jacobson’s Every Last Breath: A Memoir of Two Illnesses explores her journey through chronic illness and witnessing her mother’s end-of-life process. Her memoir reflects on the proximity of death, transformation, and resilience.

Legendary filmmaker Sheila Evans humorously reflects on writing her will, poking fun at the young legal assistants witnessing her document signing. She ends with an ice-cream sundae as her "final" reward.