'This book sets a new benchmark bringing to center stage a global perspective on death and dying. It reminds us that while mortality is universal there are major cultural, economic and social differences in how people live and die across the world. Accessible in its clarity, ease of voice and logical structure, this book is an essential teaching resource' - Margaret Gibson, Senior Lecturer in Sociology, Griffith University, Australia 'Ruth McManus's perceptive assessment of encounters with death provides readers with an original and invaluable resource exploring global developments and contemporary human responses to death.' - Cyril Schafer, Lecturer in Social Anthropology, University of Otago, New Zealand 'This smartly written work demonstrates the sociological imagination at its best when analyzing how global dynamics shape international mortality patterns, mortuary practices, and death belief systems'. -Michael C. Kearl, Trinity University, USA