The shocking new memoir from Death
At last, the mysterious, feared, and misunderstood being known only as “Death” talks frankly ... read full description
At last, the mysterious, feared, and misunderstood being known only as “Death” talks frankly ... read full description
reviews
Oct 14, 2008
Jennifer
rated it: 
What with the intoduction; I was a little worried that this would be another lesson in how I should have paid more attention in English Lit (omg murder me proper English, 25 cent words left and right, etc) But as I've gotten into the meat of the story, I've really started to enjoy it. So far, it's hilarious, and well written. While not completely dumbed down, it has a good flow that has me pouring over its pages. I was finished with this in no time. I'd suggest this book to anyone who enjoye
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Dec 10, 2008
Death a life by george pendle really struck my interest mainly because of the picture on the front.Obviously its about "death" well as a person (grim reeper).George pendel really sets the scene of hell and all the characters that inhabit it.My favorite character would have to be death himself of course mainly because,he takes his job seriously and handles matters professionally.He helps people sometimes even as they are souls to cope with going over to the other side,and that just show
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Jun 03, 2009
Chuck
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The best thing about this book is that it is a biting parody of the memoir genre. How many troubled childhoods and addiction recoveries do we have to read? This book tries to skewer them all. Death had a tough life; after all, he was the son of Satan and Sin. And, when he finally grows up, he is denied his one true love and becomes addicted to life, fo all things. Can't you just see the irony here?
The humor in this book is rather reminiscent of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Gala More...
The humor in this book is rather reminiscent of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Gala More...
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Jan 05, 2011
Cameron
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I personally loved this book. I didn't know what to expect at first, seeing how it was a suggestion from a pretty strange friend of mine. However, once I started reading, I couldn't put it down. It was, in one word, hilarious. It makes a great parody on the Christian religion without actually being offensive. I'm not Christian myself, but the girl that suggested it to me is. It's simply an interesting look on what Death must have experienced in his nearly infinite existence. And there are certai
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Oct 11, 2011
Bryce
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A send up of all the lurid tell-all memoirs that hit the best-seller lists, this time with Death as the teller-all.
I wanted to like this book, I did. It is October after all, the perfect month to spend a little time with the Grim Reaper. Unfortunately, this book concentrated on being a joke first and a good story far second. Somehow, with all of time, creation and mythology behind him, Death failed to have anything to say. To save folks the trouble, here's his story: "I liked my More...
I wanted to like this book, I did. It is October after all, the perfect month to spend a little time with the Grim Reaper. Unfortunately, this book concentrated on being a joke first and a good story far second. Somehow, with all of time, creation and mythology behind him, Death failed to have anything to say. To save folks the trouble, here's his story: "I liked my More...
Feb 13, 2009
Vicky
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What a great holiday read! I am absolutely serious. It was a good book to enjoy without rushing. The memoir of the Death, the difficult childhood in Hell, parents - Sin and Satan who don't understand the poor offspring. The new project that God decided to start on Earth and all the consequences that Death has to pay for God's mistakes and inconsistencies. A lot of mythology, legends, philosophy. I like the idea: "that everyone was initially supposed to have gone to Heaven, but the place got
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Nov 02, 2011
Kathy
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Death: A Life by George Pendle was so witty and pleasurable; I read it from start to finish in one sitting. I have lost many people this year including two six year olds (Neuroblastoma) so you may think it unusual that I picked a humor book about death after such a loss but after all the grief I needed to laugh through it. An account of Death's life, it made references that had me laugh out loud to the point that I had tears peeping out of my eyes. There is an educational opportunity in this bo
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Aug 13, 2009
Ryne
rated it: 
The mystique of death has been entertaining to mere mortals for centuries, partly because of our miniscule understanding of passing on. Death has numerously been portrayed as a being, yet one thing is clear about George Pendle's witty novel: it's also fun to give Death a little exposition.
The title of Death: A Life is pretty straightforward in terms of summing up the book. Death travels from Hell to Earth, where God places him in charge of gathering souls to send on to the afterlife. More...
The title of Death: A Life is pretty straightforward in terms of summing up the book. Death travels from Hell to Earth, where God places him in charge of gathering souls to send on to the afterlife. More...
Jul 26, 2011
Ken
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Death is NOT just another part of Life and not until now has Death's infernal story been revealed to mortals. For the first time in eternity Death sits down with George Pendle and spills his guts giving us all the gory details of his abusive childhood as the rebellious son of Satan and Sin, his near fatal obsession with cute furry mammals, his torment by the Four horsemen of the Apocalypse, and his unending loneliness of being the End of All Things. After reading Death's memoir he will forever
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Apr 10, 2010
Lady Ethereal Butterfly
rated it:
Death: A Life by George Pendle is a satirical novel pretending to be a memoir written by Death chronicling his life and work. Really though, it’s a parody of religion and creationism. Initially, I picked up Death: A Life because the concept of a memoir written by Death struck me as hilarious, but I wasn’t expecting it to be as well written and entertaining as it was. The character of Death was so much more complex and troubled than I ever imagined he would be, and the other characters were eithe
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Jan 15, 2012
Mike
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This book is one of the most entertaining reads I have encountered in a long time. Who knew that there was a Wooden Messiah? I did not. Who could know that there were angels that had simply fallen, not to be confused with the fallen angels? This could be why my mother would always tell me to tie my shoes. This deliciously irreverant tale of gods, God, GOD, Jesus,the Ghost, and the anti-hero Death, is destined to be be re-read over and over again, with remarkable similarity to Death's girlfriend,
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Jul 16, 2011
Peter Landis
rated it:
The concept of this book is far better than its execution (no pun intended).
It starts out quite humorous, to the point of me laughing out loud, but eventually fades as the jokes become repetitive and the story not nearly as momentous as the beginning implies it to be. By the end, it was simply tedious.
This would have been a much better short story than full novel – a short story I would excitedly tell others to read, as opposed to a novel I can not really recommend to anyon
It starts out quite humorous, to the point of me laughing out loud, but eventually fades as the jokes become repetitive and the story not nearly as momentous as the beginning implies it to be. By the end, it was simply tedious.
This would have been a much better short story than full novel – a short story I would excitedly tell others to read, as opposed to a novel I can not really recommend to anyon
Apr 06, 2009
Christina
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Admittedly, this book was not what I expected. Actually, I'm not even entirely sure what I expected, but this wasn't it. However, it was actually sort of amazing. It was witty but requires a bit of a dry sense of humor to get it. Blatantly satirical, which is always wonderful. I've recommended it to so many people already because I just can't stop thinking about it. There are several messages hidden within it (some are less sureptitious than others). I could go on for days.
Jan 08, 2009
Stacie
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Fantastic! One of the funniest interpretations of mythological creation I have ever read. Told from Death's perspective, a diabolical take on God's work through the ages. Death's frequent reference to himself as "...I am the End of All Things," followed by a good shove into the oblivion darkness is just the way I'd want to go. I love the explanations for the beginning of polytheism and the condensing to monotheism, "We are cutting our costs and down sizing..." so told by the
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Dec 15, 2008
Susan
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If you've ever wondered how Death got to be the way It (He?) is, this is the book for you. From his dysfunctional family--he's the son of Satan and Sin--to his unconventional upbringing in Hell, from his introduction into the Garden of Eden to his time spent with the three horsemen of the Apocalypse, here is Death's own story. Not for the squeamish, not for the easily offended, but a fascinating take on the major mysteries of life.
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Feb 07, 2011
Blair
rated it:
Interesting premise. The story-line was hit or miss but the laughs came a-plenty. I could write down exactly what happened in the story but I mean, the title pretty much speaks for itself. Death finds his true calling in life to be death. Death becomes addicted to Life after meeting a girl equally obsessed with death. Death gets weaned off of Life after remembering why he liked death in the first place. The end. Throw in a colorful cast of characters of whom we are all already acquainted
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Aug 05, 2011
Meh. I liked his idea of Oscar Wilde's hell. But it was just too much of the same humor over and over again. I'd rather it have been written as a diary rather than an autobiography. There are also a lot of deaths that could have been brought to the forefront. And I think the clinic was just too stupid. I apologize for the flat-out review with no real substance but it reflects my feelings of the book.
Jun 09, 2010
Betsy
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This book is hilarious. I found myself laughing out loud several times and I'm one of those annoying people who says "That's so funny!" instead of laughing. The humor gets a five stars - hands down. However, I didn't find the book particularly engaging and never felt the urge to find out what happens next. I'd just pick it up when I didn't really know what I wanted to read and always found it to be a very funny, relaxing relief. Definitely worth a read, but better for folks who love th
Jul 26, 2010
Elizabeth
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This is one of the funniest books I have ever read. It is Death's biography. It includes how Death found his calling, Death’s take on why unicorns died out (the answer – they were assholes), the truth behind Cain and Able (Able was an annoying nancy boy), and death’s addiction to life and his painful stint in rehab. This one is a LOLer. Besides if you read it on the bus, nobody sits next to you.
Feb 12, 2009
Ginelle
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
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Jan 05, 2010
Logan
rated it:
Hah. This was fun.
Death's memoir picks up some time before Time and follows his doings through Creation, the Ancient World, the less distant past (though not much on Earth is observed by him during this time, as he is in rehab), and the present. Death's encounters with God, Jesus, the various Archangels (Gabriel and Michael are especially amusing), Satan, the Greek and Roman gods, and other figures from myth and history are endlessly entertaining. A fun, light read. Probably not a go More...
Death's memoir picks up some time before Time and follows his doings through Creation, the Ancient World, the less distant past (though not much on Earth is observed by him during this time, as he is in rehab), and the present. Death's encounters with God, Jesus, the various Archangels (Gabriel and Michael are especially amusing), Satan, the Greek and Roman gods, and other figures from myth and history are endlessly entertaining. A fun, light read. Probably not a go More...
Nov 20, 2008
Melissa
rated it:
This one is hilarious! Right up there with Lamb by Christopher Moore!
The book is written as Death's memoir, covering early childhood to the present - mom is Sin, dad is Satan (an absentee father). It's full of one-liners and quips. Example: God discovers that Cain killed Abel and exclaims "Me in heaven!" Very funny. A quick read.
The book is written as Death's memoir, covering early childhood to the present - mom is Sin, dad is Satan (an absentee father). It's full of one-liners and quips. Example: God discovers that Cain killed Abel and exclaims "Me in heaven!" Very funny. A quick read.
Oct 16, 2011
Karen
rated it:
Meh. I wanted to read this because it looked interesting and funny, but, in the end, only a few parts were interesting and a good 85% of the humor was of the variety that should've been followed by rim shots and groans. Half of the remaining humor that was more to my liking was subsumed in the captions to the pictures included within the text (e.g. "The Horses of the Apocalypse: Precious, Waterbiscuit, Blackie, and Mr. Jenkins" or "Cows: Unambitious").
Oct 29, 2011
Courtney
rated it:
An amusing, nonsensical, and very different view of the cosmos, is this autobiography of Death and his non-life. This book will make you laugh, make you question, and definitely make you say WTF more than once. So pick up this book and be prepared to meet a Death like you've never met before.
May 29, 2009
Shamekia
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This book was the most hilarious, offensive, sacrilegious work of literature I've ever read. It's really smart, corny, philosophical, whimsical, and sometimes just plain dumb, (but in a good way). I recommend this to anyone who wants a good laugh and a good discussion afterward.
Dec 26, 2008
J.
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Jan 23, 2012
T&C
rated it:
This book is a satire on memoirs. The author introduces us to Death and tells the story of his ‘life’ from the beginning of creation. I loved the sarcasm and humour in this book, it was completely unexpected. The little drawings at the end of each chapter had be laughing out loud. The timeline of history was a little off. He did have Adam and Eve co-existing with Dinosaurs, but besides the wonky history the book was fantastic. It could have also easily been called Death: A Love Story. I think fa
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Feb 09, 2010
Stacy
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Not only was this book absolutely hysterical it was so intriguing. If the satire isn't enough to enthral you the love story certainly will be. Yes, even Death has a love interest.
A must read for all lovers of humor.
A must read for all lovers of humor.
May 14, 2009
T
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After reading Death: A Life, I cannot wait to read The Remarkable Life of Millard Fillmore. Pendle is a treasure!George Pendle
Aug 05, 2011
Jenny
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Ok, I only made it to about page 40 - and then I leafed through the rest in about a minute - which confirmed that this novel is funny but very closely tied to a Christian version of Death. Bible references non stop. I'd prefer a universal Death, of course. So, I stopped reading.
