Scientific and Practical Guide to Death and Dying

As an RN who has seen death firsthand, I was curious about what this book had to offer. The author is a hospice volunteer, so she does have some viable personal insights into death and dying, and she has gone further and talked with medical professionals, some of whom specialize in palliative care, and studied current research into death and dying. She also shares some of her personal experience in dealing with her own mother’s death. If one is up for reading the science, I believe that this book would be helpful for those who are newly diagnosed with a terminal illness and for family members touched by such. The book not only looks at the physical aspect dying process itself (insofar as we can know it) but also at coping with it and getting your affairs in order. You’ll learn a little about the hospice system, which is not as well understood as it could be.

I feel like the book should have actually been several books: one just for the person who is dying, one for family members, one for caregivers, and one that speaks directly to the science of it all. At times, this book does feel like it is trying to be too much to too many types of people, so a specialized set of books would be more helpful. For instance, I believe that a simplified, well-organized version would be fantastic for the person who is actually dying, stressing the situations so they will run across in the physical aspect as well as the mental and financial preparation.

I find myself wondering at the statistic that she gave in the beginning, that 90% of us will die after living with a disease for days, weeks, or years. I don’t quite buy that, or at least, wouldn’t put it that way. Life is terminal; we will all die. Chronic diseases give one a higher chance for mortality but don’t necessarily cause death directly. After all, say, a person with high blood pressure doesn’t necessarily die from it even if they’ve lived with it for years. Sometimes death is sudden, like in a car crash. However, often it is more of an aggregate of certain factors: age, general health, and chronic diseases (co-morbidities) than a specific terminal illness.

All in all, though, I do you think this is a very helpful book for those involved in the dying process. you may want to cherry-pick your way through, picking the nuggets that apply to you and your situation.

Cut, Tidy, and Declutter Your Life

Minimalism is certainly a trendy topic right now, and in this book, the author shares her own personal journey and insights into returning to her minimalist roots. She states at the beginning that she believes that we are all born minimalist but become more maximalist as we become part of our culture.

The first section addresses why this topic could be important in your life, and then further chapters look at specific aspects of life, like mind, body, soul, environment, and money. Several topics are explored within these aspects (like the Soul part looking at spiritual practices as well as your social circle), and everywhere she encourages you to declutter and simplify all parts of your life. Not everything will relate to everyone. Not everyone is addicted to, say, taking selfies. But she does bring up much food for thought about where you might be over-complicating your life and perhaps causing yourself some distress. Parts of this book felt a little too personal for me. The author does not hesitate to share her own stories and her own minimalist journey. It does make sense in a book like this to share those kinds of details; it is still just mildly uncomfortable. That said, if you’re looking to live your life more minimally, this book could guide you to a more on that approach in several parts of your life.

Excellent Guide About How to Study

I have read a lot of nonfiction books lately where the author just seems to be attempting to cash in on the quick reads the categories on Amazon, producing a book that is light on content or perhaps even just cobbled together from a variety of websites. (I can’t tell you how many of those in particular I’ve seen lately.) So it was an absolute delight to see a nonfiction book, particularly one on learning, that has more steak than sizzle. This book is actually written by an instructor at the University of Strathclyde in Scotland who is also a researcher. So he’s got some bona fides. The book actually does deliver solid information on how to best learn while in university/college courses, much of it backed up by actual scientific studies.

The book follows a logical structure, first looking at flawed learning strategies and exploring what learning is. He even goes into some brain science throughout the book. Then he talks about study habits and ways to make learning last. Surprisingly, one of the chapters is called Focus and Passion, the latter being about emotionally engaging with the subject. Who would ever associate learning with passion? Final chapters look at exam preparation and examining your own learning.

I found one thing highly amusing, as a person who reads a lot of nonfiction aimed at the general public, especially in the self-help field. I’m used to seeing nonfiction book chapters end in a series of questions or tasks to do. But you can tell this guy is a university professor because his questions at the end of the chapter more test your knowledge about what you just read rather than have you act on it! For instance, his review question on the Pomodoro Technique didn’t ask you to use it but rather asked you what it is, how long the study sessions are, and how long the breaks are.

I don’t think the book is accurately titled, though the subtitle is accurate. This really isn’t a book about how to learn. Rather, it is a book about how to study for high school or college/university courses. I think there was one rather large omission. Since this book was so well done, I would have loved to have seen a little discussion about learning and the older student. Having been one who went to college for the first time at the age of 17 and then returned for more education at the age of 42, I know that learning is very different depending on your age, and your study habits have to change in order to accommodate an aging brain (though it appalls me to have to admit that!). All in all, this is a well-written and researched book from which, if you have a need to learn how to study for advanced high school classes, college, or university, you might glean some very beneficial insights.