A fascinating listen

What a gem of a book. Very different from her other books and not what I was expecting, but an extremely thought provoking listen. Jennifer Worth was a lady who had great understanding of life and death.

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Jennifer Worth, once again, offering a gentle hand on a difficult subject

Firstly, if you have not read/listened to the authors trilogy, now known as Call the Midwife, I urge you to do so.
Her writing style is situational and anecdotal, which can be easily confused with being disjointed if you have not seen her previous works.
Jennifer, in all of her years of wisdom in hospitals, midwifery in London, assisting of the dying and in her own personal life highlights the peaks and troughs of the subject of death with a delicacy that must be applauded.
She sees and explores all sides of a discussion, offering her own insight and experiences as the basis of her own opinions which she does not, under any circumstance, pressure the reader into agreeing with.
With a subject like death, it should be somewhat obvious that this is a difficult and sometimes distressing topic. I myself had to stop and pause as I related so strongly to the chapter that I needed a moment to reflect on my own experiences with death in the family.
Therefore, if you have recently suffered a loss I would take this book with caution. It is a necessary, but some may not be ready to listen as to how geriatric treatment is handled, the difficulties and guilt that you feel when you lose someone - that you haven’t done enough, as two examples. Everyone is different, but I thought I would put that out there for anyone to consider.

On the whole, I do wholeheartedly recommend listening to this book and I can say with confidence that the narrator paced and read the story well, with appropriate accents where necessary and was very clear in her speech.

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A moving and wise book

This book should inform all medical, nursing and legal practitioners on dying and death.Superbly written

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A must have for your library

I love all Jennifer Worth books and this one I could easily relate to; as I work in the care sector and have done for many years . She has covered all the areas of a carer and how life in a care home is with exact detail and knowledge of understanding. This book I sat and listened to it from start to finish with no interruptions.

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2 people found this helpful

Superb dealing of a taboo subject

Honesty and integrity with real insight and understanding are the hallmarks of this narrative. Not the most humorous account by the nature of its subject but full of genuine warmth.
Not to be missed

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wonderful

Another masterpiece by Jennifer. A skilled story writer. I feel after this book I know her personally.

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3 people found this helpful

Beautiful

One of the most thought provoking and compelling books I have read. Thank you Jennifer.

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A beautiful book

I've listened to all of Jennifer's books and enjoyed all of them. But this? This is a beautiful, classy book about a very taboo subject. Jennifer gives life to death, she takes us through the journey of death with beauty and kindness. It's not a sad book, but a a happy book.

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heavenly helen

loved it an intense listen but well worth it.Very explabatory and full of medical issues.

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Not like the other books

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

No. I understand that it's heavy material, but it's not an enjoyable read, and not like her other books.

Would you be willing to try another book from Jennifer Worth? Why or why not?

Her other books document hard lives that have sad moments, but there are lessons to learn and there are also happy moments to enjoy. There's also a narrative with the other books. These are snippets of people's lives with no uplifting moments. She preaches her own opinion a little too much. It's a book about death, which everyone, relatives of the dying included, experience differently. Most people want to remember a relative in their prime, not in their last few days if they look completely different. Worth disagrees with this view quite heavily, and it was at this point that I turned the audiobook off.

What three words best describe Barbara Flynn’s voice?

Very good, speaks quietly and is comfortable to listen to during the sad parts. However, this can get old fast, and it sounds quite depressing after an a hour or so.

Was In the Midst of Life worth the listening time?

No. I won't finish listening to it.

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2 people found this helpful