Author Mark Alan Elliott didn't intend to write Life with Death, or even a book at all. But then life-more specifically, death-spoke up and demanded it.

Thinking about the deaths of his parents, dear friends, and beloved Great Dane-even contemplating his own eventual passing-Elliott realized he had a lot of questions. How can spirituality help someone through such loss, or does throwing God in there just make it more of a boondoggle? Around sadness and grief, can there also be laughter? Why is it that sometimes the loss of people foundational to your life, like parents, feels lighter than the weight of a pet or someone you'd known only a short time?

Covering a host of topics most explorations or guides about death do not, Life with Death is raw in its emotion and honesty, as well as its humorous self-effacement. It's perfect for anyone who is suffering a loss or struggling with their feelings regarding that loss, including if that involves thinking about their mortality. Grief is a tough journey but a manageable one, and no one is alone along the way. Take comfort in this book on your path-another human's relatable examination of just how perplexing, mostly tragic, sometimes humorous, often angering, and, quite frequently, all of the above at the same time that death can be.