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This is a comprehensive manual for anybody reaching the end of life, and for their caring friends, relatives, advocates, and caretakers. The author, an Episcopal priest, describes in detail the formidable challenges faced by those who wish to avoid months or years of painful treatment after they no longer have any hope of recovering any reasonable quality of life. Specific subjects include: the nature of physical death; legal documents to clarify one's wishes; the need for a strong advocate to have the patient's wishes honoed moral questions that must be considered; means of dying painlessly once the decision is made; and much more, including how to respond to reluctant doctors, and the value of humor in communicating with a dying patient. Abraham emphasizes that despite is position as a priest, this is not a religious book.