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Old 12-30-2017, 11:22 AM   #29
KempoMRK
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6 or 7 years after I first read this I really enjoyed it again. It's not a book to read in a short period of time, it's best to dip in and out by reading a few chapters every day or two. I found that when I read half of the book in one sitting it started to feel repetitive, but by breaking it up a bit more it makes it far more enjoyable. I love the concept of the afterlife, so this appealed to me when I first read it and it still appeals to me now. I enjoyed the creativity of all of the chapters, even though some were a little dull. My favourites were the following:

Metamorphosis - You live on in the afterlife until your name is spoken for the last time. I liked that this was considered beyond sentimentality, by thinking about the types of people who wouldn't want to be there.
Great Expectations - Everyone signs up to a virtual afterlife where you can choose what you want to be, but upon death they're disappointed to find out it was a con, and they're in the stereotypical version of heaven with fluffy clouds and harps. This one made me laugh because I could imagine humans getting completely duped by it.
Will-o'-the-Wisp - You can watch anything happening on earth on a TV screen, however, only the sinners are allowed to watch as it's seen as a form of torture to see your loved ones disappoint, grow old and die.
Prism - You're split into multiple versions of yourself at all different ages. I found this very clever because I'd often thought about what body you'd become in a hypothetical afterlife.
Subjunctive - You share an afterlife with hundreds of different versions of yourself, who have made better or worse choices than you did. I really liked this one, probably my favourite of them all. The thought of seeing the better and lesser versions of yourself and growing to hate them all was very funny but also thought provoking.

I initially gave this a 4/5 when I first reviewed it years ago, and I think I'll stick with that. Though at times it became repetitive I found that overall it was such an enjoyable concept that it managed to go beyond that.

4/5
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