{"product_id":"are-they-dead-yet-the-art-of-the-obit","title":"Are They Dead Yet?: The Art of the Obit","description":"\n\u003ctable align=\"center\" border=\"0\" cellpadding=\"2\" cellspacing=\"0\" width=\"100%\"\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd class=\"productDetailSmallElements\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBiographical Note\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eSam Roberts\u003c\/b\u003e, a 50-year veteran of New York journalism, is an obituaries reporter and formerly the Urban Affairs correspondent at the \n\u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e. He has hosted the \n\u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e \"Close Up\" on TV and the podcasts \"Only in New York,\" anthologized in a book of the same name, and \"The Caucus.\" He is the author of \n\u003ci\u003eThe New Yorkers\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eA History of New York in 27 Buildings\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eA History of New York in 101 Objects\u003c\/i\u003e, and \n\u003ci\u003eGrand Central\u003c\/i\u003e, among other books. He has written for the \n\u003ci\u003eNYT Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e, the \n\u003ci\u003eNew Republic\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eNew York\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eVanity Fair\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eForeign Affairs\u003c\/i\u003e, and \n\u003ci\u003eAir Mail\u003c\/i\u003e. A history adviser to Federal Hall, he lives in New York with his wife. \n\u003cb\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Quotes\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\"A charmingly digressive history, part-time how-to and all-around appreciation of newspaper death notices, from a master of the form.\" --\u003ci\u003eThe Chicago Tribune\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Lively, entertaining, deeply perceptive, and occasionally very funny...One of those books that gives us a new appreciation and greater understanding of something we thought we already knew.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"[Roberts employs] adroit use of language, wit, and observation . . . Readers will revel in this lively book of the dead.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"A brisk, witty look at writing about the dead.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003eKirkus\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"The sad decline of local newspapers means the near-extinction of full-time obituary writers. Sam Roberts, one of the best, does a mordantly wonderful job of dissecting the delicate craft of summing up the dead. Next time you're invited to a funeral, stay home and read this book instead. You'll get the gist.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003eCARL HIAASEN, #1 New York Times bestselling author\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Sam Roberts makes death seem hilarious and positively endearing. A master of the mini-biography, Roberts reminds us of the pleasures of the obituary page. It is all about the life-and the thought occurs to me that my own departure would not be so bad if only Mr. Roberts could write the obit!\" -- \n\u003ci\u003eKAI BIRD, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of American Prometheus\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Sam Roberts's \n\u003ci\u003eAre They Dead Yet? \u003c\/i\u003eis a must for anyone who loves obituaries. I almost died laughing.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003eROZ CHAST, New York Times-bestselling author of Can't We Talk About Something More Pleasant?\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"It can be hard to admit that obituaries are one of your favorite parts of a paper. Sam Roberts is a maestro composer of the form, and here he gives us a long, loving look into how obits are created. Oddly, this book is fun!\" -- \n\u003ci\u003eJOHN McWHORTER, New York Times bestselling author\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"\" \n\u003ci\u003eAre They Dead Yet?\u003c\/i\u003e is amusing, informative, anecdotal, revelatory, digressive, surprising-I could go on, but I'll end with this: Death has never been so much fun.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003eDANIEL OKRENT, Pulitzer Prize finalist and first New York Times public editor\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\"Writing obituaries calls for a finely balanced blend of sensitivity, truth-telling, decorum, boldness, humanity, and philosophy . . . Few know the challenges of the job better than Sam Roberts, a (the?) leading obituary writer at \n\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times . . . \u003c\/i\u003eAn engrossing voyage through the practice of his trade.\" -- \n\u003ci\u003eANN WROE, Obituaries Editor, The Economist\u003c\/i\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher Marketing\u003c\/strong\u003e:\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"Mordantly wonderful.\" -CARL HIAASEN\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"I almost died laughing.\" -ROZ CHAST\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"My own departure would not be so bad if only Mr. Roberts could write the obit!\" -KAI BIRD\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eFrom celebrated New York Times obituarist Sam Roberts, the art of the obit: Who we remember, how we forget, and where we find the true meaning in a life\u003c\/b\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003eAfter nearly a decade behind the obituaries desk at the paper of record, Roberts knows obits aren't really about deaths. In fact, they usually only mention dying once. Over the course of the nearly 1,500 obituaries he has written throughout his career, he has instead come to understand that they're about distilling an entire life lived-for someone whose name he may have learned that morning. \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e In \n\u003ci\u003eAre They Dead Yet\u003c\/i\u003e?, Roberts explores the major questions that arise from the task of producing a succinct yet record-defining account of a life. Who deserves an obituary, and how do we decide who gets one? How does an obituarist choose what to include-and to omit? What happens when embarrassing information, like a crime, affair, or wonky cause of death, makes itself known? What makes a legacy, a claim to fame? And what happens when that claim to fame, so important in death, isn't what mattered in life at all? \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWith wit, wisdom, and behind-the-scenes intrigue, Roberts examines the practice of writing advance obituaries, of which there are more than 2,000 on hold and regularly updated at the \n\u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e, America's relationship to death in the wake of 9\/11 and the pandemic, classic euphemistic language, and more. Through it all, Roberts brings his humor, shrewdness, and experience to prove what he has learned from a long career in death: There's no such thing as an ordinary life. \n\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eReview Citations:\u003c\/strong\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"italic\"\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/span\u003e 06\/01\/2026 (EAN 9781639733651, Hardcover)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eContributor Bio:\u003c\/strong\u003eRoberts, Sam\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eSam Roberts\u003c\/b\u003e, a 50-year veteran of New York journalism, is an obituaries reporter and formerly the Urban Affairs correspondent at the \n\u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e. He hosts the \n\u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e \"Close Up,\" which he inaugurated in 1992, and the podcasts \"Only in New York,\" anthologized in a book of the same name, and \"The Caucus.\" He is the author of \n\u003ci\u003eA History of New York in 27 Buildings\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eA History of New York in 101 Objects\u003c\/i\u003e, and \n\u003ci\u003eGrand Central: How a Train Station Transformed America\u003c\/i\u003e, among others. He has written for the \n\u003ci\u003eNew York Times Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e, the \n\u003ci\u003eNew Republic\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eNew York\u003c\/i\u003e, \n\u003ci\u003eVanity Fair\u003c\/i\u003e, and \n\u003ci\u003eForeign Affairs\u003c\/i\u003e. A history adviser to Federal Hall, he lives in New York with his wife and two sons.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e\n","brand":"Bloomsbury Publishing","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51496186118422,"sku":"9781639733651","price":34.8,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0857\/9910\/8886\/files\/9781639733651.jpg?v=1783057019","url":"https:\/\/lusper.myshopify.com\/products\/are-they-dead-yet-the-art-of-the-obit","provider":"Lusperbooks","version":"1.0","type":"link"}