I had high expectations for this book... and it exceeded them! What I expected was an informative, well-researched, respectful, inquisitive look into a variety of deathcare avenues, and it absolutely provides. What I was pleasantly surprised to discover right from the introduction was how much the personal introspection and commentary of the author added to my own experience of learning about each type of work. I'm used to reading academic books and would otherwise be disappointed to not find more theoretical and historical approaches combined with the investigative journalism, but I was not. I've also read other pop social science books like this (on this same topic) that have gone overboard on the personal commentary to the point where they were patronizing to the people they were interviewing and the belief systems they were reporting on. I find that inexcusably insulting and off-putting. Hayley Campbell's book is the perfect blend of personal vulnerability and in-depth journalism. I would love to teach this some day.