A Stroud author has written a book on a topic a lot of us are unwilling to talk about: death.

Mary Brown, a former Quaker prison chaplain and lifelong Stroud resident, has drawn on 45 chats with a wide variety of people to write ‘The Undiscovered Country: Conversations about death and dying’, published recently by KCA of Dursley.

Some of Mary’s interviewees talk about bereavement, some about caring for the dying - others told of friends crossing the road to avoid having to talk to someone bereaved.

All agree, however, that death should not be the taboo subject it currently is.

“These conversations show that death is part of life, and that we can live more fully if we can talk about it,” said Mary.

This is not Mary’s first book. She wrote on her experiences visiting inmates in ‘Confessions of a Prison Chaplain’, published in 2014, covering topics such as forgiveness, Christmas in prison and learning behind bars.

Take a look at Mary’s newest book here: amzn.to/2OV6Swb