WDer Ackermann aus Böhmen, also known as Der Ackermann und der Tod, is a work of prose in Early New High German by Johannes von Tepl, written around 1401. Sixteen manuscripts and seventeen early printed editions are preserved; the earliest printed version dates to 1460 and is one of the two earliest printed books in German. It is remarkable for the high level of its language and vocabulary and is considered one of the most important works of late medieval German literature.
WThe American Way of Death is an exposé of abuses in the funeral home industry in the United States, written by Jessica Mitford and published in 1963. An updated revision, The American Way of Death Revisited, completed by Mitford just before her death in 1996, appeared in 1998.
WBeing Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End is a 2014 non-fiction book by American surgeon Atul Gawande. The book addresses end-of-life care, hospice care, and also contains Gawande's reflections and personal stories. He suggests that medical care should focus on well-being rather than survival. Being Mortal has won awards, appeared on lists of best books, and been featured in a documentary.
WBig Cat, Little Cat is a 2017 children's picture book written by Elisha Cooper. It was published by Roaring Brook Press, a subsidiary of Macmillan Books. In the story, a large, white cat welcomes a new black cat into a family. The white cat then dies, and the cycle begins anew when the family adopts a new kitten. Cooper was inspired to write the story after his family experienced a similar situation. Critics praised his illustrations, for their ability to help further the story's messages and themes. These monochromatic illustrations were different than the style Cooper normally employed when illustrating a book. The book was well-reviewed, and received a 2018 Caldecott Honor.
WThe Day That Went Missing: A Family's Story is a memoir written by English author Richard Beard about a family tragedy that occurred when he was a boy and the collective denial perpetrated by his entire family in its wake.
WThe Dead Bird is a children's book by Margaret Wise Brown. Brown's text copyright was 1938 but it was not published until 1958 with illustrations by Remy Charlip; this was after Brown's 1952 death. The story was reissued in 2016 with new illustrations by Christian Robinson. The book tells the story of a group of children who find a recently dead bird, and bury it with ceremony. Always seen as a "gentle", "standout" book about the emotions attached to death, the book benefits in the newer version from Robinson's "cinematic storytelling", set in a "a lush urban park" with "characters [who] are diverse in gender and ethnicity but universal in their emotions, curiosity, and playfulness".
WDeath Without Denial Grief Without Apology: A Guide for Facing Death and Loss by former Oregon Governor Barbara K. Roberts is a personal narrative of the author's experiences during her husband, Frank's battle with cancer, the final year of his life, and the subsequent years of grieving.
WDeath, Desire and Loss in Western Culture is a 1998 philosophy book by the social theorist Jonathan Dollimore. The book describes the influence of the death obsession in western culture. Dollimore's analysis is heavily influenced by early modern culture.
WThe Denial of Death is a 1973 work of psychology and philosophy by the cultural anthropologist Ernest Becker, in which the author builds on the works of Søren Kierkegaard, Sigmund Freud, Norman O. Brown and Otto Rank. It was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction in 1974, two months after the author's death.
WDuck, Death and the Tulip is a 2007 children's book by German author and illustrator Wolf Erlbruch. The book, which deals with death and the afterlife, has been translated into various languages, including Dutch and English, and was adapted in animated and movie format.
WFrog and the Birdsong is a 1991 children's book by Dutch author and illustrator Max Velthuijs. It is one of the books in the "Frog" series. The main character, Frog, finds a dead bird, and with the help of his friends investigates death and buries the bird, after which funerary games lead to insight on life. The book won the 1992 Gouden Griffel and is frequently used in classrooms and therapeutic settings to teach children how to cope with death.
WThe Grey Zone is a 2001 American war film, and Holocaust drama directed by Tim Blake Nelson and starring David Arquette, Steve Buscemi, Harvey Keitel, Mira Sorvino, and Daniel Benzali. It is based on the book Auschwitz: A Doctor's Eyewitness Account written by Dr. Miklós Nyiszli.
WInsomniac City: New York, Oliver, and Me is a 2017 memoir by writer and photographer Bill Hayes, primarily recounting his life in New York City and his romantic relationship with neurologist and writer Oliver Sacks over the last seven years of Sacks' life. The book is composed of vignettes narrated in prose, interspersed with poetry and diary entries, and is illustrated with Hayes' photographs.
WKilling for Culture: An Illustrated History of Death Film from Mondo to Snuff (1994) is the first book in the Creation Cinema series and deals with death in film and media.
WLife Against Death: The Psychoanalytical Meaning of History is a book by the American classicist Norman O. Brown, in which the author offers a radical analysis and critique of the work of Sigmund Freud, tries to provide a theoretical rationale for a nonrepressive civilization, explores parallels between psychoanalysis and Martin Luther's theology, and draws on revolutionary themes in western religious thought, especially the body mysticism of Jakob Böhme and William Blake. It was the result of an interest in psychoanalysis that began when the philosopher Herbert Marcuse suggested to Brown that he should read Freud.
WMortality is a 2012, posthumously published book by Anglo-American writer Christopher Hitchens. It comprises seven essays which first appeared in Vanity Fair concerning his struggle with esophageal cancer, with which he was diagnosed during his 2010 book tour and which killed him in December 2011. An eighth chapter consisting of unfinished "fragmentary jottings", a foreword by Graydon Carter and an afterword by Carol Blue, are also included in the publication.
WNana Upstairs & Nana Downstairs is a 1973 non-fiction children's book by Tomie dePaola which introduces children to the concept of death.
WSpook: Science Tackles the Afterlife (2005), published by W. W. Norton & Company, a non-fiction work by Mary Roach, is a humorous scientific exploration as to whether there is a soul that survives death. In Britain, the title of the book is Six Feet Over: Adventures in the Afterlife.
WStiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers is a 2003 non-fiction work by Mary Roach. Published by W. W. Norton & Company, it details the unique scientific contributions of the deceased.
WThe Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, written by Sogyal Rinpoche in 1992, is a presentation of the teachings of Tibetan Buddhism based on the Tibetan Book of the Dead or Bardo Thodol. The author wrote, "I have written The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying as the quintessence of the heart-advice of all my masters, to be a new Tibetan Book of the Dead and a Tibetan Book of Life." The book explores: the message of impermanence; evolution, karma and rebirth; the nature of mind and how to train the mind through meditation; how to follow a spiritual path in this day and age; the practice of compassion; how to care for and show love to the dying, and spiritual practices for the moment of death.
WTough Boris is a 1994 Children's picture book by Mem Fox. It is about a pirate who grieves when his parrot dies and a boy who helps him through this difficult time.
WTributes: Remembering Some of the World's Greatest Wrestlers, sometimes known as Wrestling Observer's Tributes: Remembering Some of the World's Greatest Wrestlers or just Tributes is a 2001 book by sports journalist and professional wrestling historian Dave Meltzer, with a foreword by Jeff Marek.