With the End in Mind: Dying, Death and Wisdom in an Age of Denial

Dying, Death and Wisdom in an Age of Denial

By: Kathryn Mannix

Narrated by: Elizabeth Carling

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

‘Impossible to read with dry eyes or an unaltered mindset’ Sunday Times

‘Illuminating and beautiful’ Cathy Rentzenbrink

With the End in Mind is a book for us all: the grieving and bereaved, the ill and the healthy. By turns touching and tragic, funny and wise, it tells powerful human stories of life and death.

Eric, the retired head teacher who even with Motor Neurone Disease gets things done. Sylvie, 19 and diagnosed with leukaemia, sewing a cushion for her mum to hold after she has died. Nelly and Joe, two people enduring loneliness to shield their beloveds from distress.

A powerful and emotional book based on a lifetime’s clinical experience, With the End in Mind offers calm, wise advice on how to face death, live fully and find a model for hope in dark times.

Kathryn Mannix’s With the End in Mind was a Sunday Times bestseller the weeks ending 6 January 2018, 13 January 2018 and 3 February 2018.

Critic reviews

‘It is incredibly moving, of course, but what it isn’t is miserable. Yes this is a book about death, but it is also a book about joy. There aren’t all that many books that change the way you see the world. This book really might. It will make you want to do a better job of loving and living. It will make you want to be kinder. And it will make you want to cherish every precious moment of your precious life.’

Sunday Times

‘Extraordinary and profoundly moving. … Any reader will come away with the wish that they will be cared for at the end by someone with Mannix’s imaginative sympathy and matter-of-fact generosity of perception’

Rowan Williams, New Statesman

‘Illuminating and beautiful … I shed a few tears but it’s not gut wrenching and Mannix weaves the light and dark strands of her experience with finesse. It’s essential reading for anyone who will encounter death, and that means all of us.’

Cathy Rentzenbrink, The Times

‘I got to the end of Kathryn Mannix’s book with just one thought – I wish I’d been a palliative consultant … A reminder that talking about death is an Act of Love’

Greg Wise

‘In the last few years, there has been a crowd of books by doctors, scientists and writers that have sought to show us different, kinder ways of ending: Atul Gawande, Oliver Sacks, Henry Marsh… the list is long. Now Kathryn Mannix joins this distinguished group. Mannix’s aim is to shed a soft, clear light on a subject too often avoided. Mild, tender and conciliatory, I would like her to be my compassionate, wise doctor when I lie dying.’

Observer

Oh my !

I would give book a 10! Touching, informative , a necessary subject to be discussed.

Such a great book!

I really thought this book was great all the way around! The only thing that I wish is that it included some story about someone who wanted to end their medical suffering but isn't allowed to do so in the State that we live in. How do you handle that person? otherwise...the book is very well written and nariated. Five stars!

One of the best books ever

Loved this book. The reader was fabulous and the story so real. Very helpful for living. Helpful to plan dying and so real.

Honesty, Humanity and Compassion

This is an extraordinary book. As a semi-retired Neurologist I can tell you that Dr Mannix's book could only be written by someone with a rare combination of clinical skill, humility, honesty, humanity and compassion. I was by turns amused, amazed, inspired and brought to tears as I listened to the stories of ordinary (and some extraordinary) people confronting their imminent death. I learned much as a clinician from listening to this book, but I think I learned even more as a human being concerning ways of reflecting on, and valuing the certain knowledge that we will all die at some (currently unknown) future time. I believe Dr Mannix will convince any open-minded person of the value of that reflection and learning. I cannot recommend this book highly enough, and have already begun giving copies to those I care about.

Very enjoyable and poignant

No use running away from the inevitable, and this book is invaluable in learning more.