Near the Exit: Travels with the Not-So-Grim Reaper

by Lori Erickson

Overview

"An ideal guidebook to facing the inevitable." Foreword Reviews

After her brother died unexpectedly and her mother moved into a dementia-care facility, spiritual travel writer and Episcopal deacon Lori Erickson felt called to a new quest: to face death head on, with the eye of a tourist and the heart of a pastor. Blending memoir, spirituality, and travel, Near the Exit examines how cultures confront and have confronted death, from Egypt's Valley of the Kings and Mayan temples, to a Colorado cremation pyre and Day of the Dead celebrations, to Maori settlements and tourist-destination graveyards. Erickson reflects on mortalityâ€"the ways we avoid it, the ways we cope with it, and the ways life is made more precious by accepting itâ€"in places as far away as New Zealand and as close as the nursing home up the street. Throughout her personal journey and her travels, Erickson  helps us to see that one of the most life-affirming things we can do is to invite death along for the ride.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781611649550
Publisher:	Westminster John Knox Press
Publication date:	08/13/2019
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	180
File size:	14 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Lori Erickson is one of America's top travel writers specializing in spiritual journeys. She is the author of Near the Exit: Travels with the Not-So-Grim Reaper (which won a Silver INDIES Award for 2019 Religion Book of the Year from Foreword Reviews) and Holy Rover: Journeys in Search of Mystery, Miracles, and God. Her writing has appeared in the Los Angeles Times, National Geographic Traveler, and Better Homes&Gardens, among others. She lives in Iowa City, Iowa, with her husband.

Editorial Reviews

Using a variety of vignettes, combined with actual global travel experiences with Erickson’s philosopher partner, factual history, anthropology and personal reflections, all spiced with wit and humanity in digestible form, we find ourselves virtually born aloft on a magic-carpet ride that provides a wider view of mortality. A must for every Death Café, Reading Group and, hopefully, family discussion.” —Franciscan Magazine

Franciscan Magazine

"An ideal guidebook to facing the inevitable." - Foreword Reviews

From the Publisher

What’s important about Erickson’s work is the cross-cultural perspective and the attention to mortality that is crucial for living consciously.”

—Presbyterian Outlook

Presbyterian Outlook

★ 08/01/2019

Episcopal deacon and travel writer (Holy Rover) Erickson decided to explore past and current perspectives about death near and far because of her own experiences facing and handling the losses of beloved family members and dear friends. Her travel stories about some beliefs and practices observed in Chicago (Day of the Dead festivities); Egypt (Book of the Dead); New Zealand (honoring ancestors); Mexico (Mayan and Aztec traditions); Crestone, CO (cremation ground); Milwaukee (Forest Home Cemetery); Rome and Assisi, Italy (Necropolis and Basilica, among other sites); and home in Iowa City, IA (Sacred Stone Circle at Harvest Preserve), are interwoven beautifully with childhood memories in Iowa and heartbreaking experiences visiting her mother in a nursing home. Readers who have faced loss and wondered about preparing for their own deaths will appreciate the insights into how other cultures prepare for and celebrate death. The writing is fluid, deeply personal, and sometimes touching. This work also includes a two-page list of discussion questions related to the contents. VERDICT This book's journey to spiritual places near and far is worth taking.—Elizabeth Connor, Daniel Lib., The Citadel, Military Coll. of South Carolina, Charleston

Library Journal