Soon

In the old days, a hospice was a place of rest and entertainment for pilgrims and travelers. One might think, on first consideration, that the definition has changed over the centuries, for modern hospices are a place for the dying; yet what is death but a journey, and the dying but a different set of pilgrims? In Soon: Tales from the Hospice, A.G. Mojtabai draws on her experiences as a hospice volunteer to craft a collection of stories detailing the final days of a group of terminally ill fellow travelers. In her preface, Mojtabai describes the process by which she wrote these stories:

I noticed a woman in a turban, sitting up in bed writing one letter after another. What was in them? I had to write those letters myself in order to find out.... The sight of an emaciated man in a plaid bathrobe, walking down the corridor, using his IV pole for support, conjoined with my reading of cancer diaries, set me to the writing of "Zone."

Each story has its seed in an actual experience, and from these germinal moments has sprouted a collection of stories that are sad, inspiring, moving, and even occasionally funny. If nothing else, Soon reminds the reader that life doesn't end with a terminal diagnosis, and that, strange as it may seem, the last days can be among best.