The Dying Game: A Curious History of Death

by Melanie King

‘Who knew reading about death could be so much fun?’ - Beth Conklin, author of Consuming GriefWhat really happens when you die? Melanie King uses examples from our rich cultural heritage to illustrate that the answer to that question is as fascinating as it is complex. Spanning seances to cryonics, and mummies to today’s black market in body parts, The Dying Game explores our extraordinary relationship with death. Covering thousands of years of human history and drawing on an eclectic cast of characters including vampires, mummified monks, perfectly preserved saints, and embalmed icons, King offers a tour of the final taboo that is compelling, engrossing, and never depressing.King gamely tackles important subjects that are guaranteed conversation killers, from the fear of being buried alive to the art of dying well. How do we define death when technology is being used to keep a person alive? What role will euthanasia play in the future? Is it really a good idea to try to live forever? Negotiating the realms of ethics, religion, the law, entertainment, and technology, The Dying Game unforgettably illustrates that dying, like living, can be quite an adventure. Available for download on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk.Melanie King is the author of four books and is based in Oxfordshire.

Genres: Death, Nonfiction, History

275 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 28, 2008

Reviews

[Jennifer deBie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very much in the vein of Mary Roach's Stiff, King's The Dying Game is an absolutely delightful, and utterly irreverent, history of death and the weird things we've been doing with our dead for centuries. For researchers, it's refreshing for someone to look at the kooky history of death and the death industry and point out that it is, indeed, kooky. For lay people, I'm sure it's fun too.

I'm a firm believer that much of society's fear of death comes from the unknown, and writers/historians like King, who are willing to demystify it even a little are my heroes. I am very glad this book exists and even gladder that I found it in time to use it in my PhD thesis.

[MR MARK J PEDDER · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book you can't put down

This book was full of interesting facts and information that had me hooked from the first page. So much so that I have read it twice now in a short space of time. Definitely recommend it.

[F. Denise · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very detailed history of different types of funerals traditions in ancient times and the world today

[Emily]

A lot of interesting facts, but the writing left me cold.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Morbidly entertaining and witty. A ghoulish tour of the life after our deaths in the physical realm...so sorry about your lip implants...holy chinese foetuses, Batman, that's disgusting (and so much more!). Good times.

[Lexi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Finally finished this. The read was entertaining, and it was, as I thought, the the European counterpart to Stiff. Different writing type, but similar information. Fascinating as always when given a small glimpse into cultural aspects of anything, but in the case, death, dying and views on both.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating, entertaining and morbidly enlightening. Loved it.