Review of Not Dead Yet
Posted: 23 May 2024, 10:23
[Following is a volunteer review of "Not Dead Yet" by Mark Fletcher.]
‘Do you see us?’ is a phrase often used by Millie, one of the most recurrent characters in the book, every time she feels like the person in front of her is not taking her or her fellow guests seriously just because of the place they live in. I feel like these few words are an excellent way to sum up the book’s spirit and the message it carries.
‘Not Dead Yet!’ by Mark Fletcher forces the reader to think about something one rarely stops to ponder about if they don’t have direct experience with it: the topic of aged care facilities. The elderly who choose to live in such places are often thought of by the general public as people who are just waiting to die, but Fletcher proves to the reader that this belief couldn’t be further from the truth.
The book is made up of short stories that describe the everyday life in a facility, from various guests’ points of view. Sometimes, we read about things we’d expect to be associated with old age, such as loneliness, regret and the inevitability of one’s body not being what it once was. Surprisingly, though, most of the residents tell stories we would never expect from them: inside the facility, they find love, they struggle to form new friendships and to accept themselves for the first time, they chase dreams they had left behind and they fight to make themselves heard and to make sure their opinions count.
I would rate this book a five out of five because I was moved by the way it acknowledges that old age doesn’t look the same for everybody in such a delicate and understanding way. I would change nothing about the way this book is written. The writing is very matter-of-fact, and makes for a very in-the-moment writing style, which I appreciated: things are depicted exactly the way they are, and nothing else needs to be added to make the reader feel like they really are in the facility watching the events unfold. In my opinion, this book would be a perfect read for young people, to make them understand that aging doesn’t mean giving up life as one knows it just to fit the stereotype of an ‘elderly person’.
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Not Dead Yet
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on Smashwords
‘Do you see us?’ is a phrase often used by Millie, one of the most recurrent characters in the book, every time she feels like the person in front of her is not taking her or her fellow guests seriously just because of the place they live in. I feel like these few words are an excellent way to sum up the book’s spirit and the message it carries.
‘Not Dead Yet!’ by Mark Fletcher forces the reader to think about something one rarely stops to ponder about if they don’t have direct experience with it: the topic of aged care facilities. The elderly who choose to live in such places are often thought of by the general public as people who are just waiting to die, but Fletcher proves to the reader that this belief couldn’t be further from the truth.
The book is made up of short stories that describe the everyday life in a facility, from various guests’ points of view. Sometimes, we read about things we’d expect to be associated with old age, such as loneliness, regret and the inevitability of one’s body not being what it once was. Surprisingly, though, most of the residents tell stories we would never expect from them: inside the facility, they find love, they struggle to form new friendships and to accept themselves for the first time, they chase dreams they had left behind and they fight to make themselves heard and to make sure their opinions count.
I would rate this book a five out of five because I was moved by the way it acknowledges that old age doesn’t look the same for everybody in such a delicate and understanding way. I would change nothing about the way this book is written. The writing is very matter-of-fact, and makes for a very in-the-moment writing style, which I appreciated: things are depicted exactly the way they are, and nothing else needs to be added to make the reader feel like they really are in the facility watching the events unfold. In my opinion, this book would be a perfect read for young people, to make them understand that aging doesn’t mean giving up life as one knows it just to fit the stereotype of an ‘elderly person’.
******
Not Dead Yet
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on Smashwords