Mortality & Death

"Nothing can be said to be certain," wrote Ben Franklin, "except death and taxes." And yet, death is often ignored, dismissed, or delayed as an experience worth contemplating—until we are forced to reckon with it head-on. The books in this collection do their own reckoning.

On the Beach

by Nevil Shute

Publication year 1957

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes War, Death, Family, Friendship, Marriage

Tags Science Fiction, Military & War, Classic Fiction

Nevil Shute’s novel On the Beach was published in 1957. It tells the story of a group of people living in Melbourne, Australia, who face the end of the world after a nuclear war destroys the entire Northern Hemisphere. As they wait for the radioactive fallout to reach them, the characters must deal with the fact that their days on Earth are numbered. The story was initially published in four parts under the title The... Read On the Beach Summary

On the Shortness of Life

by Seneca

Publication year 49

Genre Essay / Speech, Nonfiction

Themes The Past, Future, Death, Nature Versus Nurture

Tags Classical Period, Philosophy, Ancient Rome, World History, Psychology, Psychology, Philosophy, Self-Improvement, Classic Fiction, Religion & Spirituality

... Read On the Shortness of Life Summary

Onyx Storm

by Rebecca Yarros

Publication year 2025

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Courage, Fear, Grief, Loneliness, Love, Sexual Identity, Death, Future, The Past, Fathers, Siblings, Teamwork, Self Discovery, War, Good & Evil, Trust & Doubt

Tags Fantasy, Romance, New Adult

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Ophie's Ghosts

by Justina Ireland

Publication year 2021

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Memory, Femininity, Race, Coming of Age, Death, The Past, Family, Social Class, Economics, Equality, Justice, Power & Greed, Religion & Spirituality

Tags Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery & Crime Fiction, African American Literature

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Orthodoxy

by G. K. Chesterton

Publication year 1908

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Religion & Spirituality, Death, Community

Tags Religion & Spirituality, Christian, Philosophy, Philosophy, Classic Fiction

G. K. Chesterton’s Orthodoxy was published in 1908 as an awaited follow-up to his acclaimed essay collection entitled Heretics, which was published three years earlier. A short and pithy volume, Orthodoxy lays out the author’s philosophical convictions aligning with the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church and the Christian religion. Chesterton questions the resonance and popularity of Christianity, and he attempts to answer this question by saying that it is the perfect blend of the... Read Orthodoxy Summary

Our Town

by Thornton Wilder

Publication year 1938

Genre Play, Fiction

Themes Death, Community, Family, Love

Tags American Literature, Classic Fiction, Drama, Coming of Age, Education, Education, Dramatic Literature, Historical Fiction

Our Town (1938) is a three-act play written by American playwright Thornton Wilder. Wilder served in both World War I and World War II and wrote honestly about life in America. He wrote several plays but considered Our Town to be his best work. It was performed for the first time in Princeton, New Jersey, in 1938. Wilder received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for Our Town, and the play is widely considered to be... Read Our Town Summary

Outlive

by Peter Attia

Publication year 2023

Genre Book, Nonfiction

Themes Aging, Mental Health, Death, Midlife, Science & Technology

Tags Health, Science & Nature, Self-Improvement, Sports, Psychology, Psychology

... Read Outlive Summary

Out of the Dust

by Karen Hesse

Publication year 1997

Genre Novel/Book in Verse, Fiction

Themes Death, Social Class, Place, Climate, Coming of Age, Safety & Danger, Disability, Siblings, Community, Forgiveness, Shame & Pride, Daughters & Sons, Economics, Music, Guilt, Mothers, Art, Loneliness, Hope, Childhood & Youth, Animals, Fathers, Grief, Food, Education

Tags Historical Fiction, Children`s Literature, Coming of Age, Agriculture, US History, Great Depression, Education, Education, World History, Classic Fiction

Karen Hesse’s Out of the Dust is a historical middle-grade novel in verse first published in 1997. Through 110 first-person free verse poems, the narrative tells the story of two years in the life of Billie Jo Kelby, young daughter of a struggling farming family in the Oklahoma Panhandle in the mid-1930s. After a tragic accident results in the death of Billie Jo’s mother and baby brother, she and her father must find a way... Read Out of the Dust Summary

Out Stealing Horses

by Per Petterson, Transl. Anne Born

Publication year 2003

Genre Novel, Fiction

Themes Memory, Coming of Age, Death, Loneliness, Guilt, Fathers

Tags Historical Fiction, Scandinavian Literature, Modern Classic Fiction

Out Stealing Horses, by Norwegian author Per Petterson, was first published in 2003; the English-language translation by Anne Born was published in 2005. Told in the first person, the novel follows Trond Sander’s meditations on key events in his life and his acceptance of his advancing age and future death. Set in a remote forested area of eastern Norway, the novel moves back and forth in time between its present-tense setting in 1999 and Trond’s... Read Out Stealing Horses Summary