Death is But a Dream, Christopher Kerr
Death is But a Dream, Christopher Kerr
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Death is But a Dream
Finding Hope and Meaning at Life's End

Author: Christopher Kerr, Carine Mardorossian

Narrator: Fred Sanders

Unabridged: 7 hr 41 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Published: 02/11/2020


Synopsis

The first book to validate the meaningful dreams and visions that bring comfort as death nears.

Christopher Kerr is a hospice doctor. All of his patients die. Yet he has cared for thousands of patients who, in the face of death, speak of love and grace. Beyond the physical realities of dying are unseen processes that are remarkably life-affirming. These include dreams that are unlike any regular dream. Described as "more real than real," these end-of-life experiences resurrect past relationships, meaningful events and themes of love and forgiveness; they restore life's meaning and mark the transition from distress to comfort and acceptance.

Drawing on interviews with over 1,400 patients and more than a decade of quantified data, Dr. Kerr reveals that pre-death dreams and visions are extraordinary occurrences that humanize the dying process. He shares how his patients' stories point to death as not solely about the end of life, but as the final chapter of humanity's transcendence. Kerr's book also illuminates the benefits of these phenomena for the bereaved, who find solace in seeing their loved ones pass with a sense of calm closure.

Beautifully written, with astonishing real-life characters and stories, this book is at its heart a celebration of our power to reclaim the dying process as a deeply meaningful one. Death Is But a Dream is an important contribution to our understanding of medicine's and humanity's greatest mystery.

About The Author

Christopher Kerr, MD, PhD, is the CEO and chief medical officer at Hospice Buffalo. Born and raised in Toronto, Kerr earned his MD as well as a PhD in neurobiology and completed his residency in internal medicine at the University of Rochester. His research has received international attention and has been featured in The New York Times, Atlantic Monthly, and the BBC. He lives on a horse farm in the small town of East Aurora, New York.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Ava on March 17, 2020

I had to finally give up on this book. I tried hard to make it to the end, but I couldn’t get myself to go through yet another anecdote. Kerr claims his work is different because of research but his book is just a series of stories. Nothing wrong about that, but don’t try to say your book is differe......more

Goodreads review by David on March 28, 2020

3.5 stars. A bit uneven but overall a nice choice for its comforting message for the terminally ill and their loved ones. The author is a doctor at a hospice facility in Buffalo, NY and his book focuses on the dreams and visions of the dying and the role they play in helping to prepare someone to die......more

Goodreads review by Lou on March 10, 2020

Disturbing to read the review by Angela Russo. The fact that someone can render such strong opinions that are refuted by fact is wrong. Angela please read the chapter on the cop which begins by saying that nothing in this book is meant to suggest that all end of life experiences are are pleasant, in......more

Goodreads review by Jake on July 31, 2020

"My unlikely journey to medical school took an even stranger turn after I started working at Hospice Buffalo. Here, I was confronted by what I had tried to forget ever since childhood: the sight of dying patients with outstretched arms, reaching and calling out to their mothers, fathers, and childre......more

Goodreads review by Tracey Allen on May 22, 2020

A fellow reviewer recently pointed out that I read a lot of books on death and I suppose I do. Sleep and death - the eternal sleep - are two topics I've always been interested in but exploring them in audiobooks is a relatively new experience. It has nothing to do with the current pandemic sweeping......more